Police arrested a man in Ventura accused of spray painting swastikas across the city, authorities confirmed.
John Williams, 30, of Ventura, was arrested Sunday after five instances of vandalism in the form of spray-painted swastikas were reported throughout the area, according to the Ventura Police Department.
Sunday morning at about 9 a.m., the department received a call from a business on the 1000 block of East Front Street reporting that a swastika was spray-painted on a wall on its property. Authorities identified the suspect as Williams after observing him on surveillance footage.
Four more reports were made over the next several hours — both on public and private property. Those locations were:
- Harbor Boulevard / Sanjon Road
- 100 Block W. Main St.
- 100 Block W. Garden St.
- Santa Clara St. / S. Ventura Avenue
At about 11:44 a.m., officers observed Williams riding an electric scooter in the area of Main and Ash Streets. After stopping him, officers found evidence of the vandalism in his possession, authorities said.
He was arrested on suspicion of felony vandalism, misdemeanor vandalism, hate crime and parole violation.
Officers discovered Williams’ social media accounts during the investigation. On those pages, Williams took photos of the swastikas that he painted, and made it appear that other people were committing the crimes in order to spread fear, authorities said.
No additional details were immediately made available.
