String of vandalism strikes Bloomington Hills overnight

Some of the graffiti found in Bloomington Hills, St. George, Utah, Aug. 30, 2014 | Photo by Aspen Stoddard, St. George News

ST. GEORGE — Numerous Bloomington Hills residents awoke Saturday morning to find their personal property vandalized by black spray paint.

Some of the graffiti found in Bloomington Hills, St. George, Utah, Aug. 30, 2014 | Photo by Aspen Stoddard, St. George News
Some of the graffiti found in Bloomington Hills, St. George, Utah, Aug. 30, 2014 | Photo by Aspen Stoddard, St. George News

Words and symbols drawn with black spray paint were found on a utility trailer, a brand-new red Chevy pickup truck and privacy fences throughout Bloomington Hills. The graffiti is suspected to have happened between 8 p.m. and 8 a.m., St. George Police Officer Jace Hutchings said.

St. George Police received reports of a group of about eight juveniles walking through the area late Friday night, but no connection to the graffiti has been made. Approximately four juveniles have been interviewed, but as of right now this is an ongoing investigation, Hutchings said.

Much of the graffiti found used profane language and other words and symbols with negative connotations, but the graffiti isn’t suspected to be gang related or a product of a hate crime, St. George Police Sgt. Rich Triplett said. Gang related graffiti, or “tagging,” takes time, whereas this incident seems to indicate a juvenile or group of juveniles who got their hands on a can of spray paint.

“The one thing that was consistent amongst most of them was the number 666,” Triplett said.

Keeping vehicles, buildings and other property free of graffiti is a high priority for St. George police officers, St. George Police Officer Michael Christensen said.

“We have a protocol; we jump right on it and have it cleaned up,” Christensen said. “We don’t want the city getting tagged all the time.”

Some of the graffiti found in Bloomington Hills; portions have been blurred due to inappropriate language, St. George, Utah, Aug. 30, 2014 | Photo by Aspen Stoddard, St. George News
Some of the graffiti found in Bloomington Hills; portions have been blurred due to inappropriate language, St. George, Utah, Aug. 30, 2014 | Photo by Aspen Stoddard, St. George News

The charge in this type of case would be a third-degree felony for criminal mischief unless police officers discover more black spray paint related to this incident. Currently, the total damage stands at $3,000, Triplett said.

As a note of precaution, Triplett advises citizens to be cognizant and aware of the happenings in their neighborhoods. Anyone who sees a person walking around the neighborhood late at night with a can of spray paint should report it.

This report is based on preliminary information provided by responders on scene and may not contain the full scope of findings.

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25 Comments

  • Herd August 30, 2014 at 4:12 pm

    Probably the work of St George koolaid church kids.

  • ??? August 30, 2014 at 5:33 pm

    Church hoodlum wannabes.

  • Wow! August 30, 2014 at 6:41 pm

    Meanwhile, your StG cops taser some guy to death.

    • Phil August 30, 2014 at 8:16 pm

      Mohave county (Arizona) sheriff deputies.

    • laerdes August 30, 2014 at 10:09 pm

      Um….no. Those were Mohave County, Arizona cops. That happened in Arizona.

  • Mike August 30, 2014 at 8:10 pm

    Wow….SGPD had absolutely nothing to do with that call in the first place and what relevance does that have to do with this story……get a life. You’re an idiot.

    • Wow! August 31, 2014 at 3:15 pm

      My bad. It was the Mojave TASER gang abuse of power, not the The St George SWAT gang. Probably was some church kids, and their mommas need to give them a hard spankin’

  • Steve August 30, 2014 at 9:15 pm

    Don’t panic! If you’ve been tagged by spray paint use white paper towels and laquer thinner. It will wipe the spray paint off of factory car paint and factory trailer paint in minutes with no harm to your vehicle!

  • JSD August 30, 2014 at 9:20 pm

    “Anyone who sees a person walking around the neighborhood late at night with a can of spray paint should report it.”
    Ya think?

    • joanna September 1, 2014 at 7:26 am

      LOL. The more you know…

  • bobber August 30, 2014 at 11:29 pm

    These are good kids, they just had a temporary lapse in judgement. They’ll be in sacrament meeting tomorrow handing out bread crumbs and mini water cups. see y’all there…

  • The Rest Of The Story August 31, 2014 at 12:04 am

    So graffiti is a third-degree felony but baking your kid in a car is nothing. And you get thousands of dollars in donations too. Weird.

    • Koolaid August 31, 2014 at 3:16 pm

      Giving your dog (or horse) a bone will get you in more trouble as well.

      • The Rest Of The Story August 31, 2014 at 11:44 pm

        Unless you know the right people down at the ward.

  • Happierthanyou August 31, 2014 at 5:38 am

    OH SORRY, my bad…I thought It was okay to spread my message all over town and infringe on other peoples rights,,,whether they want to hear it or not. . I will make sure I dont do that again. Kids that did this are idiots but, ironic just the same.

  • sing4money August 31, 2014 at 5:39 am

    dumb kids.

  • Justaguy August 31, 2014 at 9:24 am

    Maybe the St. George police department should be patrolling neighborhoods instead camped at those 2 speed traps they’ve got on Brighan Road.

  • Mean momma August 31, 2014 at 2:01 pm

    It looks like they were drawing …
    Ed. ellipsis – really, Mean momma?

    • joanna September 1, 2014 at 7:56 am

      LOL @ the editor comment

  • Zonkerb August 31, 2014 at 10:57 pm

    Lmao I always hear that Bloomington was an upscale neighborhood by the snobs that live up there. HA HA HA HA HA

    • Country September 1, 2014 at 6:49 am

      It’s upscale compared to all the trailer parks in Washington and Dixie Downs and Ivins

  • joanna September 1, 2014 at 7:30 am

    The children really need to work on their spray canmanship. I can barely read what they wrote.

  • kaaljean September 1, 2014 at 5:18 pm

    One of the issues is St George police will not let you report anonymously. I live in the desert hills area & due to travel sometimes arrive home late & I see plenty of kids out doing very disturbing behaviors in the little valley/BH/DH area. I and several neighbors have called but the dispatcher will not take a report without your name & phone number & says that it will be on record. St George needs anonymous reporting so that residents don’t fear retaliation.

    • Bosoms September 2, 2014 at 8:16 am

      Who’s going the retaliate? Some kids’ bishop parents who don’t like people criticizing their kids’ behaviors?

    • Rachel September 2, 2014 at 10:11 am

      On the SGPD’s web page (http://www.sgcity.org/departments/police/) on the left hand side, under “Submit Police Reports”, you can submit a police report anonymously, even upload a picture of the suspect if you have one. Hopefully this helps, at least a little.

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