1000 Dollar bounty on graffiti vandals

Manteca,CA,USA

Structures laced with swastikas, obscenities

Swastikas -- including several nearly six feet in height -- were spray painted on a water well pump house as well as numerous mail boxes in Manteca's Mayors Park neighborhood.

The graffiti incident was in addition to a number of obscenities spray painted on Moffat Boulevard near the Highway 120 undercrossing.

Manteca Police spokesman Rex Osborn said officials do not believe the graffiti is gang-related but is being done by juveniles.

"We take it seriously," said Osborn.

Graffiti is among the crimes that South County Crimestoppers offers rewards of up to $1,000 for information leading to the arrests of responsible individuals. You can report tips anonymously by calling 823-4636.

The last graffiti reward was $50 that went to a fifth grader who called the South County Crimestoppers phone line to report seeing several young boys enter a park with spray paint cans.

"People remain anonymous," Osborn said. "The call from the fifth grader helped us stop a problem from occurring."

A spat of swastikas have been appearing lately throughout Manteca including behind businesses on North Main Street. The graffiti in Mayors Park, that is located southwest of Union Road and Louise Avenue, was the largest concentration yet of swastika graffiti.

Manteca municipal crews painted over the swastika graffiti in the actual park where the well house is located the day it was reported.

Manteca takes a zero tolerance approach to graffiti based on the premise that it is the first step toward blight and allowing gangs to secure a stronghold.

The Seniors Helping Area Residents and Police play a pivotal role in the location and eradication of graffiti. City laws require property owners to remove the graffiti immediately by either painting it over or cleaning it off.

By DENNIS WYATT

Managing editor of the

Manteca (Calif.) Bulletin