Five charged in graffiti spree that included ethnic slur

Published 1:30 am Saturday, October 29, 2016

Two young adults and three juveniles are facing charges for allegedly scrawling “black lives matter,” anti-police slogans and other graffiti on cars, houses and signs in the northwest area of Oak Harbor, according to court documents.

The vandalism spree occurred in the early morning hours of July 26.

While some of the graffiti referenced the Black Lives Matter movement, at least one contained an ethnic slur.

All of the suspects are listed as “white” in court documents.

The prosecutor’s office charged two 19-year-old men in Island County Superior Court Oct. 18 with accomplice to malicious mischief in the second degree, which is a felony charge.

Two boys, who were 17 years old at the time of the incident, were also charged in juvenile court with accomplice to malicious mischief in the second degree.

A girl, who was 16, was charged with accomplice to third-degree malicious mischief.

The juveniles all pleaded not guilty.

The total damage was more than $750, according to the police report.

On the list of victims are Oak Harbor Schools, Oak Harbor Public Works and five residences.

The police report indicates that some of the suspects confessed to police. One of the men said the group of friends were drinking at a home and walked to a girl’s house; she happened to have a can of black spray paint, which they decided to put to use.

The group walked to the high school, where they tagged a sign and sidewalks.

They allegedly spray painted cars and houses as they walked through nearby neighborhoods, according to the police report.