Police turn up heat on graffiti vandals
By KAITLIN STROHSCHEIN
Port Orchard Police last month arrested a teen they believe was largely responsible for a recent outbreak of graffiti vandalism. Meanwhile, they’ve implemented a multi-pronged approach to catch any taggers who may still be in the area. Since the teen’s arrest, the vandalism has decreased significantly. “We’ve seen a dramatic change in the number of reports we’ve taken,” said Port Orchard Police Commander Geoffrey Marti. “During the month of February, we took probably 40 reports,” he said. “So far this month, we’ve taken seven. And some of those may have been old — damage we didn’t find earlier.” But city police are taking measures to discourage or arrest any they may have missed. They’re offering up to a $1,000 reward for anyone with information leading to an arrest, and they’ve also contacted the owners of apartment complexes near popular sites for the graffiti, asking residents to call with information if they see suspicious activity. They can call (800) 222-TIPS or (360) 876-1700 to report violations. Local police are also contacting families of suspects to let them and their parents know the seriousness of graffiti vandalism. People can also help clean up the graffiti to complete community service hours through a city program. So keep your comments: We ask that all participants own their words by logging in with their Facebook account. It's a simple process that will take seconds and helps keep our comments free of trolls, cranks, and “drive-by” commenters. We reserve the right to remove comments from anyone using screen names, pseudonyms or false identities. Please refer to our Terms of Use for full detail on participating on our site.
Port Orchard Independent Reporter
March 17, 2011 · 8:47 AM
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