Article By: Michael D. Abernethy / Times-News
The Caswell County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the vandalism of a residence and business owned by a vocal opponent of a Confederate monument in Reidsville.
The FBI and Secret Service are also involved in the investigation and the local and state chapters of the NAACP are speaking out against the crime.
Ernest Pinnix, 66, reported to the sheriff’s office Wednesday that his auto repair shop had been vandalized sometime overnight.
Pinnix spoke publicly against the re-erection of a Confederate soldier monument in downtown Reidsville. The monument was damaged in a wreck in 2011. The Reidsville City Council recently voted to rebuild the monument in a cemetery.
Vandals spray painted “the statue’s coming back” and “F--- Obama” on the front of Pinnix’s shop on Zeb Road, which has a Gibsonville mailing address, said Lt. Frank Rose with the Caswell County Sheriff’s Office. They also slashed the tires and keyed the paint of a tow truck at the address.
About $4,600 in damage was reported at the business.
Local investigators contacted the FBI and Secret Service about the vandalism due to the mention of the president, Rose said. He also stated the vandalism is being investigated as a possible hate crime, and that detectives have few clues about the crime at this point.
The N.C. Conference of the NAACP released a statement calling for a full investigation of the incident. The Rev. William J. Barber II, head of the state NAACP, will visit the shop and hold a press conference Tuesday.
"Vicious and vulgar references of the President of the United States, trespassing on private property, hateful and racially charged messages in addition to property damage have terrorized this family,” Barber said in the release. “This should not only disturb us but represent the kind of domestic terrorism and intimidation that law enforcement and our communities cannot tolerate. Nor should they go unpunished."
Anyone with information about the crime is asked to contact the Caswell County Sheriff’s Office, at 336-694-9311, or CrimeStoppers, at 336-694-5199.
Information given to CrimeStoppers is confidential and doesn’t require a court appearance if information given leads to an arrest. A cash reward of up to $1,000 is possible through CrimeStoppers, Rose said in an email.
Video Courtesy: WRAL-TV
0 comments:
Post a Comment