Alleged infamous Seattle graffiti vandal faces felony charge
Aug 13, 2024, 3:38 PM
These photos were taken May 11, 2024 in Tacoma. The graffiti is part of a larger case against alleged Seattle graffiti vandal Kyle McLaughlin. (Photos courtesy of SPD)
(Photos courtesy of SPD)
King County prosecutors said a billboard along Spokane Street, near the West Seattle bridge, was tagged sometime between March 11 and April 8.
The company that owns the billboard is now out of thousands of dollars after a loss of revenue and having to pay for repairs.
“The reason this is a felony crime is because of the amount of damage,” Casey McNerthney, with the King County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, told KIRO Newsradio on Tuesday. “Just on this one billboard alone it was more than $8,500 in damage. If you vandalize somebody else’s property and we can prove that, you can expect a felony charge when it’s sent to us.”
More from James Lynch: Redmond pot shop hit by smash-and-grab thieves for the 4th time
During their investigation, the Seattle Police Department learned Kyle McLaughlin’s alleged crime was posted on YouTube in a graffiti documentary. McLaughlin was allegedly part of a group of vandals who wore masks, and concealed their identity in other ways, but failed to fully cover their tattoos.
Prosecutors said police were able to link McLaughlin by comparing tattoos in the video with known pictures of McLaughlin, including his driver’s license.
“What we’ve charged here is malicious mischief in the first degree and that’s a pretty serious felony that comes with a pretty significant penalty if convicted,” McNerthney said.
‘I want to do something about it:’ Seattle’s FAST seeks to help teens avoid gangs, violence
Graffiti is, unfortunately, a scourge in many communities in Western Washington, especially Seattle. It is damaging to the quality of life and makes people feel unsafe.
McNerthney: Seattle graffiti is ‘detrimental to the community’
“To have a business or a home that you invest in and put your time in, routinely vandalized, that’s really detrimental to the community,” McNerthney said. “I think a lot of times people see graffiti on I-5, or in the I-90 tunnel or on billboards and wonder, is anybody doing anything about that? King County prosecutors are. And there’s also a detective for Seattle Police and other agencies who are working every week, every day, on these cases. Even though you don’t always see it on the news.”
Therefore, Mclaughlin’s bail was set at $15,000. His next court date is August 21.
James Lynch is a reporter at KIRO Newsradio. You can read more of James’ stories here. Follow James on X, or email him here.
More local crime
- SPD: Masked suspects on the loose following White Center shooting
- 15-year-old arrested: Teen in custody in connection with deadly shooting of 19-year-old in Pierce County
- Saga continues: Belltown Hellcat back in court Monday after disregarding social media content ban
