According to the NYPD and police sources, a young anti-Israeli protestor who damaged a World War I monument in Central Park earlier this week was taken into custody after his father handed him over to the police. Because he is a kid, the teen's identify has not been made public.
Charges against the 16-year-old kid include producing graffiti, a misdemeanor, and criminal mischief in the third degree, a felony, for allegedly vandalizing the 107th Infantry Memorial on Monday night during a rowdy demonstration. The teenager, who is well-known for attending demonstrations led by the anti-Israel organization Within Our Lifetime, was finally taken into custody on Thursday after his father turned him over to the authorities.
NYPD Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry posted a grainy image of the juvenile vandal sitting on a bench at a police station while wearing handcuffs on X. Daughtry wrote, "We will not overlook or go unpunished for the heinous vandalism we witnessed earlier this week on the WWI Memorial," along with the news of one of the perpetrators' arrest.
"This is not simply juvenile hijinks — it is an act of desecration that undermines the freedoms our heroes fought and died for," he said.
Sources claim that the adolescent does not have any prior charges and attends Tottenville High School.
Several demonstrators defaced the military monument, writing "Gaza" and "Free Palestine" on its base and covering the statue with stickers criticizing Israel.
In front of the bronze monument that depicts seven WWI foot soldiers engaged in battle, another protestor set fire to an American flag.
Others were seen waving Palestinian flags while scaling the infantrymen. New Yorkers who went to the memorial site on Tuesday to see the destruction firsthand were incensed by the degradation of the monument.
Michael Skol, a 25-year resident of the affluent Manhattan area, told The New York Post, "These people are just nuts and violent."
Flag burning is anti-American. It is foolish," he said. It unquestionably benefits neither the peace process nor the Palestinians. These are those who do not follow the custom of thinking well of America. It is repulsive."
The angry residents said that the massive demonstrations by pro-Palestinian protestors were just hurting their own cause by causing needless damage.
"Treating a World War I monument the manner they did is abhorrent. It hurts your heart," said fifty-year-old Ron Zucher.
"You have the right to express your opinions in our nation, but you must refrain from demolishing monuments honoring those who gave their lives in defense of it.
He went on, "You got to have some decency." "The protesters are not helping their own cause destroying monuments and burning the flag."
The monument had graffiti on it that said "Gaza" and "Free Palestine," which a cleanup team labored painstakingly to erase on Tuesday. To remove the graffiti, they scrubbed it off using power washers and a chemical cleaning solution that degrades naturally.
Charges against the 16-year-old kid include producing graffiti, a misdemeanor, and criminal mischief in the third degree, a felony, for allegedly vandalizing the 107th Infantry Memorial on Monday night during a rowdy demonstration. The teenager, who is well-known for attending demonstrations led by the anti-Israel organization Within Our Lifetime, was finally taken into custody on Thursday after his father turned him over to the authorities.
NYPD Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry posted a grainy image of the juvenile vandal sitting on a bench at a police station while wearing handcuffs on X. Daughtry wrote, "We will not overlook or go unpunished for the heinous vandalism we witnessed earlier this week on the WWI Memorial," along with the news of one of the perpetrators' arrest.
"This is not simply juvenile hijinks — it is an act of desecration that undermines the freedoms our heroes fought and died for," he said.
Sources claim that the adolescent does not have any prior charges and attends Tottenville High School.
Several demonstrators defaced the military monument, writing "Gaza" and "Free Palestine" on its base and covering the statue with stickers criticizing Israel.
In front of the bronze monument that depicts seven WWI foot soldiers engaged in battle, another protestor set fire to an American flag.
Others were seen waving Palestinian flags while scaling the infantrymen. New Yorkers who went to the memorial site on Tuesday to see the destruction firsthand were incensed by the degradation of the monument.
Michael Skol, a 25-year resident of the affluent Manhattan area, told The New York Post, "These people are just nuts and violent."
Flag burning is anti-American. It is foolish," he said. It unquestionably benefits neither the peace process nor the Palestinians. These are those who do not follow the custom of thinking well of America. It is repulsive."
The angry residents said that the massive demonstrations by pro-Palestinian protestors were just hurting their own cause by causing needless damage.
"Treating a World War I monument the manner they did is abhorrent. It hurts your heart," said fifty-year-old Ron Zucher.
"You have the right to express your opinions in our nation, but you must refrain from demolishing monuments honoring those who gave their lives in defense of it.
He went on, "You got to have some decency." "The protesters are not helping their own cause destroying monuments and burning the flag."
The monument had graffiti on it that said "Gaza" and "Free Palestine," which a cleanup team labored painstakingly to erase on Tuesday. To remove the graffiti, they scrubbed it off using power washers and a chemical cleaning solution that degrades naturally.
