Criminal Justice
Graffiti Vigilante Cited After Painting Over Mural
A New Orleans man who has earned the nickname “Gray Ghost” because of his zealous battle against graffiti was cited by police this week for criminal damage to property.
Fred Radtke and fellow anti-graffiti activists had reportedly just applied a layer of gray paint over a fresh mural Thursday when he was stopped by police, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports.
Apparently, the mural was approved by the owner of the wall and a passerby called police while Radtke was painting. Radtke hadn’t contacted the wall owners before painting over the graffiti-inspired mural, the paper notes.
Radtke runs a not-for-profit group, Operation: Clean Sweep, which has received praise from police and politicians for helping them battle graffiti tagging.
