2008 Woodie Awards
Graffiti cleaned up, suspects sought
Police saw markings early Sunday morning, extent of damage unknown
By: Alex Piazza and Phil Hornshaw
Issue date: 10/24/07 Section: News
- Page 1 of 1
It took two days and $600 to erase the damage done by graffiti artists this past weekend to the Bovee University Center.
Steve Lawrence, vice president of Facilities Management, said two FM workers began the cleanup Monday morning and completed it Tuesday. They used a special solution that is sprayed on the graffiti and allowed to soak, making the graffiti easier to remove from the various surfaces of the Bovee U.C., such as glass and brick.
Lawrence said after it was soaked the graffiti was power washed off. The extent of any damage will not be known until after the cleanup, he said.
"It's too early to know if additional cleaning will be required," Lawrence said. "It would be very hard to replace and match the existing material and would be done only as a last resort."
CMU Police still are investigating who is responsible for the graffiti.
"We have not determined who could have done it," said Police Chief Stan Dinius. "Nobody has come forward yet."
Patrol officers initially recognized the graffiti around 6 a.m. Sunday, officials said. Students reported seeing the damage later that evening.
"We suspect it was done some time Saturday night or Sunday morning," Dinius said.
However, no surveillance equipment is installed around the area in which the spray-painting took place.
Fingerprinting would be out of the question because so many people touch the Bovee University Center on a daily basis.
A person arrested in association with the spray-painting could face charges of malicious destruction of property.
"We had to take some man hours to clean it up," Dinius said.
Some of the phrases that were spray-painted include "Jesus hates your iPod," "God hates a coward" and "Freedom or Death! Power to the People!"
Dinius said the phrases do not appear to reflect hate speech, but it will depend on who spray-painted them.
"It's the intent of the person that comes into play," Dinius said.
news@cm-life.com
Steve Lawrence, vice president of Facilities Management, said two FM workers began the cleanup Monday morning and completed it Tuesday. They used a special solution that is sprayed on the graffiti and allowed to soak, making the graffiti easier to remove from the various surfaces of the Bovee U.C., such as glass and brick.
Lawrence said after it was soaked the graffiti was power washed off. The extent of any damage will not be known until after the cleanup, he said.
"It's too early to know if additional cleaning will be required," Lawrence said. "It would be very hard to replace and match the existing material and would be done only as a last resort."
CMU Police still are investigating who is responsible for the graffiti.
"We have not determined who could have done it," said Police Chief Stan Dinius. "Nobody has come forward yet."
Patrol officers initially recognized the graffiti around 6 a.m. Sunday, officials said. Students reported seeing the damage later that evening.
"We suspect it was done some time Saturday night or Sunday morning," Dinius said.
However, no surveillance equipment is installed around the area in which the spray-painting took place.
Fingerprinting would be out of the question because so many people touch the Bovee University Center on a daily basis.
A person arrested in association with the spray-painting could face charges of malicious destruction of property.
"We had to take some man hours to clean it up," Dinius said.
Some of the phrases that were spray-painted include "Jesus hates your iPod," "God hates a coward" and "Freedom or Death! Power to the People!"
Dinius said the phrases do not appear to reflect hate speech, but it will depend on who spray-painted them.
"It's the intent of the person that comes into play," Dinius said.
news@cm-life.com
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