Bellevue police arrest man suspected of doing burnouts over LGBTQ+ Pride art
Nov 14, 2024, 3:05 PM | Updated: 3:49 pm
A Renton man was arrested for allegedly doing burnouts on a Bellevue LGBTQ+ Pride art piece. (Photo courtesy of BPD)
(Photo courtesy of BPD)
A Renton man has been arrested in connection with the vandalism of Bellevue LGBTQ+ art three separate times.
According to a Thursday Bellevue Beat Blog post, Bellevue Police Department (BPD) officers arrested a 21-year-old accused of doing burnouts over the city’s LGBTQ+ Pride art piece.
Officers arrested the man Nov. 12 around 2 p.m. at his home in Renton for three counts of malicious mischief and three counts of reckless driving. They did not have probable cause to charge the man with a hate crime.
“This individual may not have even realized that this installation was a pride-specific installation,” Drew Anderson with BPD told KIRO Newsradio Thursday.
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The man allegedly committed the vandalism on July 14 and Sept. 7 and 15.
BPD thanked the community members who used the Crime Stoppers of Puget Sound’s tipline to give the suspect’s name and information to link him to the case.
“We received numerous tips from residents who had an idea of who the suspect was,” Anderson said.
MyNorthwest and KIRO Newsradio does not name suspects until they have been officially charged.
“Officers often preach ‘see something, say something,'” Bellevue Police Department Chief Wendell Shirley said. “It’s without a doubt Bellevue residents helped law enforcement hold this individual accountable. This arrest is a testament to the teamwork a community and law enforcement can achieve together.”
The vandalism occurred over the city of Bellevue’s Pride art piece near Bellevue Downtown Park, according to police. The mural was unveiled in June during Bellevue’s Pride celebrations.
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The 21-year-old suspect allegedly conducted burnouts on the artwork, with one happening during the daytime and threatening the safety of residents.
“This individual was doing these burnouts while people were crossing the intersection, while other drivers were around, while other families were around,” Anderson said.
All three incidents caused more than $13,500 in damages.
Contributing: Aaron Granillo, KIRO Newsradio
Julia Dallas is a content editor at MyNorthwest. You can read her stories here. Follow Julia on X here and email her here.
