Los Angeles city employee among four charged in downtown graffiti spree - BERITAJA

Four men — including a Los Angeles Department of Water and Power worker — were responsible for much than $170,000 successful harm to downtown buildings during a yearlong graffiti spree, prosecutors alleged Thursday.

Javier Rezendez Rocha, who joined LADWP arsenic an adjutant to electricians, was charged pinch 12 counts of felony vandalism successful relationship pinch the drawstring of incidents that lasted from August 2025 to August 2026, according to a criminal complaint.

Rocha and 3 different men are accused of utilizing “specialized equipment” to spray-paint tags and different markings down the sides of buildings, signaling their actions pinch drones, according to a connection issued by the Los Angeles County territory attorney’s office.

“These defendants turned buildings crossed Los Angeles into their individual billboards, leaving spot owners pinch complete $170,000 successful repair costs,” Dist. Atty. Nathan Hochman said successful a statement. “Their alleged motive: not creator look but money and societal media eyeballs. They are accused of going to bonzer lengths to perpetrate these crimes, utilizing climbing instrumentality and drones to grounds their vandalism past allegedly profiting from it.”

Some of the addresses listed successful the criminal title lucifer those of historical downtown corridor buildings specified arsenic the Cameo Theatre and the Roxie Theatre. Another incident took spot wrong Pershing Square and 1 happened extracurricular downtown adjacent the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and La Brea Avenue.

Authorities said city-owned “rapelling instrumentality was allegedly used” during the incidents and displayed online, according to a spokeswoman for the territory attorney’s office.

Michael Ray Gonzales, 40, of Pico Rivera was charged pinch 7 counts of felony vandalism. Francisco Rodriguez Aguilar, 37, of West Covina and Richard Evan Ward II, 45, of Oceanside were charged pinch 2 counts each.

It was not instantly clear whether the men were represented by attorneys.

An LADWP spokeswoman did not instantly respond to a petition for comment.