Chronic Tagger in Custody

On Thursday, November 20th, Officers Mike Rosario and Tim Roberts from the Whittier Police Department’s Special Enforcement Team apprehended a chronic tagger who recently moved to Upland. The juvenile, whose name cannot be disclosed, was recently arrested in August by Whittier Police for graffiti. The Special Enforcement Team follows up on all taggers when they’re arrested and match them to other “tags” in the city. The Special Enforcement Team, known as SET, followed up on this youth on related “taggings” in the city and followed him to Upland. The juvenile was arrested on 65 other incidents in Whittier over the last year resulting in over $17,400 damage. Most of the damage was to city property, however three other private victims were identified. The juvenile sprayed, etched, marked, and painted on area locations ranging in size from 1 square foot to over 180 square feet. Taggers typically graffiti for the “rush of it” while not getting caught. The juvenile was cited into Los Padrinos Juvenile Court for Felony Vandalism. To date the City of Whittier has been awarded nearly $84,000 in restitution by the juvenile and adult courts as law enforcement and the courts crack down on offenders. Typically restitution is an order of the court imposed on the offender by probation.

The City of Whittier offers a reward program targeted at such vandals of $500 dollars. Any citizen who witnesses such vandalism in progress is encouraged to call the Whittier Police. Citizens making those calls resulting in the direct arrest of vandals are entitled to that $500 reward usually within 24 hours of the arrest.