BOSTON (WHDH) – White and black paint splashed and scrawled across the Massachusetts State House early Wednesday morning brought dozens of state, local, and federal agents to Beacon Hill and Boston Common.
State police said that at around 3:30 Wednesday morning, a suspect poured white paint on the gate and spray painted the stone columns at the state house; one of the words appeared to be “divest”.
Sources told 7News a park ranger chased the suspect, who left footprints in the white paint, and state police said the suspect ran across the Common.
As officials investigated the vandalism, state police said they received report of a suspicious package on the Common that may have been abandoned by the suspect, which, from a distance, appeared to be a long silver cylinder of some sort. FBI agents, some is hazmat suits, took paint samples and worked on computers under tents on the Common for hours Wednesday.
Governor Maura Healey condemned the vandalism and praised the thorough investigation.
“I think it’s normal course for this kind of incident,” Healey said. “And I’ll leave it to law enforcement to speak to that. But I appreciate that both state and local law enforcement are investigating this.”
Hours later, investigators left and cleanup crews sprayed the paint away, restoring the scene less than 24 hours after it was vandalized.
(Copyright (c) 2024 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)