Atlanta police arrest suspect who allegedly spray-painted swastikas on rainbow crosswalks

Law enforcement have identified and arrested a man who reportedly vandalized rainbow crosswalks by painting Swastikas on them. The Atlanta Police issued an appeal on August 19 asking for the public’s help in locating the suspect.

The Atlanta Police LGBTQ Liaison Unit was notified on Wednesday that a “symbol that appeared to be a swastika spray-painted” had appeared on 10th Street and Piedmont Avenue.

“The APD needs assistance from the public as we seek to arrest the person responsible for vandalizing the Rainbow Crosswalk. The suspect spray-painted a swastika on the LGBTQ Rainbow Crosswalk Landmark at 10th St NE at Piedmont Ave. If you have any information, call 404-546-5706,” the APD wrote.

FOX-5 reported that Jonah Sampson, 30, was arrested outside his apartment after a long standoff with a SWAT team.  

According to Atlanta County Jail records, Sampson is facing three charges of second-degree criminal damage to property, one count of criminal trespass and a further charge of interference with government property, which is a felony.

Authorities also believe that Sampson was responsible for graffiti on a monument at the Federal Reserve Building.

“This is an unacceptable act in this city, anywhere in this city or in any form where citizens are targeted by hate,” interim Police Chief Darin Schierbaum told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution last week. “This department is aggressively looking now for the individual who did this.”

A spokesman for Mayor Andre Dickens’ office had called the vandalism “disgusting” and thanked city workers “for erasing the hate that has no place in our city in such a swift and efficient manner,” the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported last week.

The rainbow crosswalks were painted following the 2016 Pulse nightclub shooting in Orlando, Florida, that targeted the LGBT community.