Johnathan Tijerina, a gun regulation activist, has been charged over allegedly vandalizing the 9/11 Memorial in lower Manhattan, New York City. The incident took place on Monday evening with Tijerina posting about his deeds on social media.
He allegedly used red paint to create his graffiti across the engraved names on the panels of the North Pool. The 31-year-old spray-painted ‘juststopkillingkids.com’ across the bronze panels.
As per Port Authority police, the vandalism was caught on surveillance camera, New York Daily News reported. Meanwhile, Ed Duffy, a 16-year-old from the UK, told CBS News he'd witnessed the crime.
“I saw somebody with red spray paint, and they sprayed 'just stop killing kids' over some of the names. And then within, like, less than a minute, the police came and arrested him,” the tourist in NYC said. The graffiti has since then been cleaned up and there's no lasting damage to the memorial at Ground Zero which was put up after the Twin Towers went down in the terrorist attack.
{{/usCountry}}“I saw somebody with red spray paint, and they sprayed 'just stop killing kids' over some of the names. And then within, like, less than a minute, the police came and arrested him,” the tourist in NYC said. The graffiti has since then been cleaned up and there's no lasting damage to the memorial at Ground Zero which was put up after the Twin Towers went down in the terrorist attack.
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“The 9/11 Memorial is a sacred place of reflection at the heart of a rebuilt World Trade Center that honors the 2,983 victims killed in the September 11, 2001 and February 26, 1993 terrorist attacks. Yesterday's brief incident was swiftly addressed by security staff and law enforcement, and the impacted area was immediately restored to its commemorative state,” a spokesperson for the 9/11 Memorial & Museum meanwhile said.
As per reports Tijerina's graffiti caused over $2,550 in damage.
Who is Johnathan Tijerina?
Johnathan Tijerina is known for demanding stricter firearm regulation, including universal background checks for gun purchases. He has also batted for laws needing every gun in America to be registered, as per his website.
The site also welcomes visitors to "learn how civil resistance works." In a video posted on Monday, Tijerina said that he had finished a seven-day fast promoting his demand for the city to build 2 million units of affordable housing within five years.
He has been charged with criminal mischief, making graffiti and possession of graffiti instruments.
Johnathan Tijerina posts about vandalism on social media
Tijerina posted about the alleged vandalism on social media. In an Instagram video posted on his ‘juststopkillingkids’ channel, he took responsibility for the act.
“My name is Jon Tijerina, and I just spray-painted stop killing kids on the 9/11 Memorial,” he said, panning the camera towards the graffiti. He also shared a statement about the incident on his social media handles.