NEWS RELEASE FROM the Port Angeles Police Department on Friday:
On Saturday June 6, 2015, Port Angeles officers responded to a report of a subject “tagging” under the Tumwater Street Bridge.
Sgt. Jason Viada arrived within several minutes of receiving the call.
He observed a large section of freshly spray-painted letters on the concrete wall on the south end of the bridge.
The letters were several feet tall and several feet long. He located the reporting party and received a description of suspect.
Additional officers responded and located a person matching the suspect description on Tumwater Street and south of the bridge. He was subsequently identified by a witness as the person seen painting letters on the bridge.
Sgt. Viada was also able to locate shoe prints at the scene and the suspect was found by Clallam County Sheriff’s Deputy Mike Backus and PAPD Corporal David Dombrowski carrying a paint bag.
The suspect, later identified as Bailey J. Anders, 23, of Port Angeles, was placed under arrest and transported to the Clallam County Jail.
He was booked on misdemeanor charges of RCW 9A.48.090 “Malicious Mischief in the 3rd Degree.”
On Monday June 8, 2015, he appeared in Clallam County District Court and entered a guilty plea. He was fined $250 and ordered to perform 16 hours of community service.
The Port Angeles Police Department continues to investigate other cases involving property damage and malicious mischief, sometimes called “tagging.”
Persons caught by officers can expect to be arrested and booked into the County Jail. The damage to property by graffiti in the City of Port Angeles is a continual problem that costs residents, business and local government both time and money to clean up.
Citizens calling law enforcement immediately is one of the most effective methods to stop tagging and the resulting property damage.
Brinn S, Smith, Deputy Chief of Police
360-912-0184, bsmith@cityofpa.us
