Two Mississippi State University art students surrendered to police Friday and were charged with malicious mischief for their roles in the recent rash of stenciled graffiti seen around Starkville.
A tip to the Golden Triangle Crime Stoppers this week led Starkville police to the home of Peter Hammond, of 305 South Jackson St., Starkville. Hammond and fellow Mississippi State art student Zachary Harris, of 401 University Drive, Starkville, then turned themselves in to Starkville police on Friday, SPD Detective William Durr said.
The pair cooperated with detectives and provided police with a stenciled image of a flamingo, which they used to spray graffiti at several locations on University Drive and other parts of town. Both were charged with malicious mischief and released on bonds of $500 each. Their cases are pending in municipal court.
“They both seemed to be very remorseful,” Durr said. “We do believe that any damage will be repaired.”
Hammond and Harris spent their Saturday scrubbing the graffiti off walls along University Drive and other locations in town. They hope charges will be dropped if they clean off all their graffiti.
Starkville Police Department Chief David Lindley credited the recent publicity of the graffiti artists” work and the subsequent Crime Stoppers tips with helping close the case.
“The publicity it received in The Commercial Dispatch and the Starkville Daily News helped us inform the public that we needed help in solving this crime, and they came through,” Lindley said.
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The Starkville Police Department released this image of a stencil used in several pieces of graffiti art around town. Photo by: Starkville Police Department
