Three people were arrested after paint was thrown on the Black Lives Matter mural outside the Trump Tower for the second time in a week.
Juliet Germanotta, 39, D’Anna Morgan, 25, and Luis Martinez, 44, all from New York, were charged with criminal mischief and later released for covering the letters on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue with Blue paint.
A woman wearing an ‘All Lives Matter’ and a rainbow cape was caught on video Friday with the logo completed by volunteers and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio last week.
Another woman was arrested for putting fingerprints on letters that Donald Trump has called a “symbol of hatred.”
Three people were arrested after paint was thrown on the Black Lives Matter mural outside the Trump Tower for the second time in a week.
Another woman is shown pouring more blue paint on the mural along Fifth Avenue.
Woman in rainbow cape is seen putting her hand painted footprints on the mural
The woman in the rainbow cape, who is also wearing an All Lives Matter shirt, appears in the photo after police moved in to arrest the vandals.
One of the suspects told WNBC that the sign should read All Lives Matter. They were joined by a team of 10 people in a coordinated effort to deface the mural that has drawn criticism from the White House and praise from protesters across the country.
An unidentified 64-year-old woman was also cited for illegally posting flyers during vandalism.
The latest arrests come after another man was caught on surveillance video pouring red paint on the same mural on Monday.
Meanwhile, New York authorities are seeking public help to identify the man from Monday’s vandalism.
The New York Police Department released images of vandalism spilling red paint and shared that he is also wanted for criminal damages.
The video shows the man at approximately 12:03 pm pulling the paint out of a bag as he approaches the mural at 725th 5th Avenue.
He can then be seen pouring the paint into various letters on the mural before setting off in an unknown direction.
The suspect appears to be a white male who could be in his 20s or 30s.
Police described the vandalism as a medium construction and said that he was last seen wearing a black T-shirt, black shorts, black sneakers, and black sunglasses.
City workers seen wiping blue paint off mural after covering on Friday afternoon
Transportation Department workers cleaned the blue paint where they could
A city worker touches the mural with a brush and covers the blue paint.
Police officers post surveillance footage and photos of a suspect who poured red paint onto the Black Lives Matter mural in front of the Trump Tower in Manhattan on Monday.
Police described the vandalism as medium complexion and said he was last seen wearing a black T-shirt, black shorts, black sneakers, and black sunglasses.
De Blasio hit the person responsible on Monday night, tweeting: “Whoever trashed our mural on 5th Avenue: Nice try @NYCDOT has already fixed it.”
The unidentified man fled the scene after throwing away the paint.
Trump Tower has been the scene of dozens of protests since Donald Trump was elected, including one last Saturday where anti-racism protests clashed with MAGA fans.
One of the witnesses to Monday’s disfigurement was a man carrying and selling ‘Dump Trump’ equipment on the street.
He was photographed standing near a man holding a sign apparently meant to light up people who highlighted racial inequalities.
He said: ‘The only time black lives matter is when they are shot by a white cop or an Oreo cookie. Defend all the police.
An ‘Oreo’ is a derogatory term used against people of color, comparing them to the cookie that is typically brown on the outside and white on the inside. The insult suggests that the person exhibits behavior that the judging person aligns with being characteristically white.
The Black Lives Matter mural outside Trump Tower was one of five that De Blasio promised to paint in New York City last month as part of an initiative to honor civil rights activists.
Mayor Bill de Blasio, who joined the community effort to paint the mural in large yellow letters last Thursday, hit the person responsible for the disfigurement in a tweet.
Heavily armed New York police officers watched as workers repainted the mural in front of the Trump Tower
Trump Tower has been the site of dozens of protests since Donald Trump was elected
One of the witnesses to Monday’s disfigurement was a man carrying and selling ‘Dump Trump’ equipment on the street when Trump supporters confronted him.
A Trump supporter held up a sign Monday referring to protests over racial inequalities.
“When we say ‘Black Lives Matter’, there are no more American statements, there are no more patriotic statements because there is no United States without black America,” said the mayor at the time.
“We are acknowledging the truth of ourselves as Americans by saying” Black Lives Matter. “We are correcting a mistake.
Trump voiced opposition to the mural earlier this month, saying it would denigrate the luxury shopping area. He also said it would “further antagonize the best in New York.”
“ Perhaps our GREAT Police, who have been neutralized and despised by a mayor who hates and disrespects them, will not allow this hate symbol to be placed on New York’s largest street, ” Trump tweeted on Nov. 1 of July.
But police appeared to ignore the president’s comments and found themselves protecting people painting the mural from counter-protesters on Thursday.
Mayor Bill de Blasio is seen helping paint the Black Lives Matter mural alongside Rev. Al Sharpton on July 9.
Black Lives Matter murals in other cities have been similarly defaced in recent weeks, including in Chicago, Milwaukee, and Washington, DC.
Last week, a couple in Martinez, California, was charged with a hate crime after they destroyed a mural there.
‘We must address the root and by-product of systemic racism in our country. The Black Lives Matter movement is a major civil rights cause that deserves our full attention, ‘Contra Costa District Attorney Diana Becton said in a statement announcing the charges against David Nelson and Nicole Anderson.
‘The mural completed last weekend was a peaceful and powerful way to communicate the importance of black life in Contra Costa County and the country. We must continue to elevate the discussions and really listen to each other in an effort to heal our community and country. ‘
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