Dumb Luck

If you’re going to spray paint, do it at night — and for god’s sake, don’t do it in front of the offices of the City Councilmember who considers graffiti one of the city’s most pressing problems:

A boneheaded 16-year old boy was arrested at around 1 p.m. Wednesday, July 11 after he climbed to the rooftops of local Astoria businesses in broad daylight just down the street from the offices of anti-graffiti advocate City Councilmember Peter F. Vallone Jr. and vandalized walls with spray paint.

After seeing the vandal atop a restaurant on 31st Street and Ditmars Boulevard, local merchants notified police and called Vallone, who arrived in time actually to watch the boy tagging the wall and being arrested. The suspect was found with a bag full of graffiti instruments and had paint on his body. He is being charged with making graffiti, a Class A misdemeanor, and Vallone is asking for restitution for damage to the businesses.

“But this case demonstrates how brazen many of these kids are getting,” Vallone said. “They have the mentality that graffiti isn’t a crime, or they won’t get caught doing it. Graffiti sends the message that we do not care about our neighborhoods — but arresting these vandals says that we do.”