Police said the missing “O” in the word “POLICE” matched an item found in the man’s pocket.
TACOMA, Wash. — A man has been charged after police say he damaged a sign at the Tacoma Police Headquarters and poured concrete over the gate, creating a risk of damage to the gate and delaying emergency response, court documents show.
Marvel Walker Jr. was charged in Pierce County Superior Court with second-degree malicious mischief, third-degree malicious mischief and second-degree criminal trespass. The charges were filed Tuesday.
According to court documents, police received a report around 2:07 a.m. Monday of someone vandalizing the main entrance to Tacoma Police Headquarters, 3701 South Pine Street.
Before an officer arrived, police said large chunks of concrete had been placed in the gate’s structure and could damage the gate if it were opened.
The officer wrote that Walker was standing near the gate when he arrived and was seen lifting a piece of concrete above his head before throwing it over a fence onto police property.
When the officer told Walker they were checking to see if the gate had been breached, Walker said no and told the officer to use the key fob to open the gate, according to the report.
Police said the concrete had not yet been removed and the officer believed opening the gate would damage the concrete.
During the search, Walker pulled a piece of black-coated metal from his hoodie pocket and said, “There’s an ‘O’ because I found it on the ground,” according to court documents.
He told the officer he found it near the police station sign.
After Walker was arrested, officers checked the sign at the entrance to the police department’s public parking lot and discovered new damage to several letters.
Police said the “O” was missing from the word “POLICE,” which matched what was in Walker’s pocket.
Walker was taken to the Pierce County Jail.
