A mural that depicts Breonna Taylor, George Floyd and other black people recently killed by law enforcement has been defaced.
The “Say Their Names” mural unveiled in Louisville last July was found Monday morning with light blue paint covering areas of the artwork, news outlets reported. The mural is located at the intersection of 11th and Main Streets.
Multiple surveillance videos from the area shows a person using a paint spraying gun to deface the mural at approximately 1:30 Monday morning. Another person appears to have served as a lookout.
In addition to spray painting the mural, the vandal wrote “Patriot Front” on the mural in three locations. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, Patriot Front has been documented as a white supremacist hate group.
Louisville Metro Police Department spokesman Dwight Mitchell said investigators are “collecting evidence and canvassing the neighborhood for any witnesses.”
Braylyn Resko Stewart, an artist who helped create the mural, said he was in “disbelief” when the building’s owner sent him a photo of the damage. He said the mural would be restored.
The incident follows damage earlier this month to another mural of Breonna Taylor in the city. A $2,500 reward has been offered for information in that case.
Taylor, an emergency medical worker, was fatally shot by Louisville police in her apartment during a no-knock search warrant on March 13, 2020, after Taylor’s boyfriend fired a shot at officers.
By Ken Howlett, News Director and the Associated Press
