30-year-old faces multiple charges in connection to Rainbow Crosswalk vandalism

ATLANTA, Ga. (CBS46) - The man who is accused of spraying swastikas on the famous rainbow crosswalk in Midtown and the Federal Reserve building has been identified by police.

Atlanta police arrested 30-year-old Jonah Sampson and charged him with criminal trespass, interference with government property, and criminal damage to property. Sampson was arrested following a two-hour standoff with SWAT police at the Solace on Peachtree apartment complex in Midtown.

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Police say officers responded to a report of a male spray painting the rainbow crosswalk at 10th Street and Piedmont Avenue NE. on Wednesday. Surveillance video showed a male enter the crosswalk and spray paint a swastika before walking away.

Then on Friday, officers responded to the intersection of 10th Street and Piedmont Avenue NE for another incident of someone painting a swastika on the rainbow crosswalk. Surveillance video also captured images of a male.

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In a press conference after the arrest, Interim Atlanta Chief Of Police Darin Schierbaum said, “[the crosswalk] is a location that means tolerance for our city, this is a community, this is inclusiveness. When someone with hate in their heart defaces it, it’s condemned by the Mayor. It’s condemned by the police department.”

Police say Sampson is being held on $77,500 bond.

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