BHB photo by C. Scales
This in from Judy Stanton, Executive Director of the Brooklyn Heights Association:
The 84th Precinct captain just stopped by to tell me that the graffiti taggers using Rex and Guder, whose tags were found on public and private property all over the north Heights, have been arrested. Credit goes to the arresting officer, Freddy Ahmetaj, and the taggers, who were caught on camera, will be charged with multiple counts of graffiti.
Unfortunately, “Guder” was able to tag one of the useful Brooklyn Bridge Park maps posted on the Promenade (the one near Clark Street) before being caught (see photo above).
Good job NYPD!
I would love to know who this miscreant was. Maybe his punishment should be having his retarded tag tattooed across his forehead backwards.
“Rex and Guder” would make a great title for a sitcom.
The arrest must have come today–as I commented elsewhere earlier, he hit a building at the corner of Clark & Hicks last night. Paint was still wet this morning.
Well done 84th! Kudos to Freddy!
Thank you, Jesus! And the 84th.
Freddy A! The BHA! Great collaboration in putting this aberration behind bars.
They ought to amputate their arms off so they can’t spray paint anymore.
Eye for an eye.
they’re kids with paint, they are not going to go behind behind bars, grandpa. calm down.
An FYI to the BHA and others: Graffiti can be cleaned off most surfaces and painted out of painted surfaces. The BHA should invest a tiny portion of their war chest on a program that cleans and re-paints surfaces vandalized by graffiti. The sooner you clean it off the less likely that it will be re-tagged.
That said, the 84th deserves a big Thank You for catching these two, whose community service should be to clean up graffiti.
It really helps that so many of the buildings have video cameras now. Our building at 60 Pineapple just added one this year.
MACGUDER!!!!!
TB, since you seem to be such an expert on graffiti removal, can you offer any suggestions on how to eradicate your posts? The BHA did exactly what it’s supposed to do…put pressure on the 84th to understand the scope of the problem and put an end to it rather than throwing money at a band-aid solution that only covers the problem without eliminating it.
NG: You’re too much, when are you going to start yelling to get off your lawn?
TB, only when you lift your leg on it,
LOL! you win gramps!
Peace TB. Maybe you and I can share a round of Metamucil together.
don’t kid yourselves people the BHA didn’t get these punks nabbed photos on BHB put the pressure on big time!
I say pound on his hand with a hammer about 10 times.
and lets see what he will tag next.
You just couldn’t resist, could you TW? Judging from some of the more violent punishments proposed on this thread, I’d say that graffiti has morphed into something beyond the realm of a “quality-of-life” issue. Was that a lion roar I heard?
Don’t be so sure about the community service punishment. I have read that the Brooklyn DA has a special graffiti program and they have put some of these “artists” behind bars. Manhattan and Queens same thing. There is a whole graffiti culture out there where they take pride in their “art”, post the vandalism on line, and brag about it. My guess is if these misdemeants are members of that subset, the DA would ask for time. Kids with no priors, nothing else going on, community service.
Are my IP addresses banned? I try to post comments but they all are subject to “moderation”. Should I change my name to The Banned II?
Thank you Claude for posting this info. What are their names and where do they live? Will someone please contact the precinct and share this info for an early crime blotter report?
It’s possible they’re juveniles, and their names would thus not be released.
“They ought to amputate their arms off so they can’t spray paint anymore.”
“I say pound on his hand with a hammer about 10 times.”
What is wrong with you people?
When I got caught writing graffiti when I was a teenager, in the 80′s (I was in the Bergen st station on my way to the Art Students League for sat morning model drawing classes) , I had to take a tour of Prospect park where park rangers showed us how monuments were destroyed by graffiti, and then had to paint the monkeyhouse at the zoo . It really didnt deter me much. Kids will be kids.
I would like to know if these guys are college students or high schoolers, I was pretty much done with ‘writing’ by the time I was 18, alot of kids these days are starting their graff careers in college after moving to the big city from elsewhere.
Also, I second Made in Brooklyn’s sentiment, how come you guys didnt wish this kind of harm to say the continuous parade of Heights muggers, break in thieves, bank robbers, the Heights bomber, and chef Dan?, but young kids doing stupid human tricks need to have their arms cut off and hands hammered? get your priorities straight.
I have said it before, a large portion of the graffiti produced in the Heigths is the work of the sons (and daughters) of Heights residents, I hung out in front of Burger King forever when I was a teenager, went to Packer for 2 years, and know this to be true.
Re the Draconian recommendations: a lot–most?–people live with a great deal of anger….
…duh!
There is a vast difference between Graffiti as an art form, and tagging as vandalism of private property. Let’s not confuse the two. This Guder was clearly in the latter category.
Of all the graffiti left by guder, the most annoying was the one on Tony’s stone stoop between Middaugh and Cranberry on Hicks. It annoys me enough that I would like to erase it. Any suggestions on how to erase paint from this stone stoop?
Thanks.
Yes, Karl. I see that one every day and I want to get rid of it too. Maybe Tony should take care of it himself? Is he aware that it’s there?
I googled “removing spray paint from concrete/stone” and it turned up a bunch of stuff. That should be something they make Gruder himself do, it sounds arduous.
Sez the Brooklyn rag:
“Cops identified their suspects as Rex Ikwueme, aka Rex, a 20-year-old freshman at Pace University, originally from Maryland.
His 19-year-old partner in crime is Joseph Daiuto, also known as Guder, from Hawthorne, N.J., police said.”
—
Couple of outlander teenagers. Adults. Time for a few weeks paid vacation at a beaufiful little island in the East River, followed by time with chemicals and a scrub brush.
How is that map useful? It *might* be useful, but presently the park is basically a construction zone, not a verdant expanse.
DAB: I find it useful in relating the construction activity underway with the completed park as planned.
Getting picked up did not deter Guder as he tagged the Dojo sometime between Monday night and Tuesday morning.
I am waiting for the civilian sentences to be delivered on the guy who attacked the 67 year old, if a graffiti writer should get his arms cut off, head tattooed, and hands hammered, what should a guy who attacks an older lady get?..I am surprised at the lack of anger towards him…
@lifer
If it makes you feel better, I’d like to see any mugger have all fingers chopped off, house burglars and bank robbers put on a chain gang planting trees in the new Brooklyn Bridge Park, the Heights Bomber’s forehead branded and Chef Dan spun violently for two hours in the Whirligig.
As for graffiti vandals, I always admired Sean Penn’s street justice in the movie “Colors.”
Hoppy, are you on poppy? You ever taste Krylon? lifer, not for nothing, but both of our theories that this was the work of local youths didn’t quite pan out. Apparently, Jersey is now da bomb…and they’re welcome to keep their toys on that side of the river.
I was caught tagging once in Bushwick (back before it was hip), and the cops made me paint a curse word on my friends forehead, and him one on me. I was happier to do that than spend time being processed, I am all for the punishment fitting the crime, I just think there’s way too much outrage on graffiti, and not enough on more important crimes up in the heights.
Everyone one is all pissed. Though it is good to hear that Guder willl not deface the hood anymore. Or at least for a few months.
Last I heard the 84th had amassed 21 charges. If you think you know of a tag that they may have not included in the tally, contact the 84th and they’ll investigate 718-875-6811.
One of my neighbors spoke to the cops since our building was one of those tagged, and they mentioned that these two lived in the St. George dorm (shocked anyone?). So that means someone owes Mike an apology since he did in fact point out the likelihood of this like 2 weeks ago after following the pattern of tags.
m2, you’re right. Given his fine sleuthing skills, Mike should now be known as Mike Hammer. And I admit that I had it wrong in thinking it was home-grow miscreants.
I suppose this is rex
http://rantlikerex.tumblr.com/
And this is Guder?
http://www.myspace.com/thefishtoo
why does law enforcement make it so easy if the fines are stiff with jail time they might not want to think twice about the crime?