Vandal caught on camera carving swastikas into freshly paved sidewalk
NEW YORK -- A vandal was caught on camera scratching out signs of hatred on a freshly paved sidewalk in a Brooklyn neighborhood, and police are trying to find him, CBS New York reports.
The vandal, with a flashlight in his mouth and a tool in his hand, drew the swastikas around midnight Saturday on a street that's ethnically diverse.
Surveillance video shows the suspect carving nearly 30 swastikas in the pavement in front of a residential building that's under construction.
"I think it's a symbol of hate and disrespectfulness," Midwood resident Zeeshan Ali said.
The suspect clearly took pride in his handiwork. The video shows him taking pictures of the hateful symbols and also drawing what appears to be a social media handle.
The property owners say the vandal might have had an accomplice on the lookout, who later ripped off what was a surveillance camera in front of the building. All that's left now is blue tape.
"This guy's on a mission," Democratic state Assemblyman Dov Hikind said. "He wants to make a statement, and he does."
Hikind says crews had just poured fresh concrete that day, making many wonder if the man in the video lives in the area.
"All of the blocks have to be removed at a cost of five or six thousand dollars," Hikind said.
The NYPD's Hate Crime Task Force is investigating the vandalism. The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) has condemned the suspect's actions.
According to the ADL, there were a total of 63 anti-Semitic incidents in Brooklyn last year and 22 in the early part of this year.
