# After arrests at train yard, police brace for graffiti artist gathering



## DeputyFife (Jun 28, 2005)

*Friday, February 9, 2007*

*After arrests at train yard, police brace for graffiti artist gathering *

By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff and Michael Naughton, Globe Correspondent 
Transit police are bracing for a wave of vandals streaming into Boston this weekend for an underground gathering of graffiti artists as law enforcement steps up patrols to curb a spike in illicit, spray-painted murals on trains. 
This morning officers arrested four men at the Braintree subway train yard who authorities allege had 39 cans of spray paint outfitted with nozzles to create complex graffiti mosaics. Two of the suspects came from Germany, one had an address listed in Wisconsin, and the fourth hailed from North Carolina. 
Police did not release the names of the four men, who are expected to be arraigned today in Quincy District Court. 
"We really anticipate the potential for serious damage over the next 72 hours," said MBTA Lieutenant Mark Gillespie, who wanted to publicize the arrests to discourage graffiti artists. "We are going to be on heightened alert." 
Transit police arrested the four men this morning before anything was spray painted, Gillespie said. They are seeking to charge them with "joining a group with intent of tagging," which is a misdemeanor. 
Transit officials have seen a spike in graffiti since mid January, Gillespie said. Some of the vandalism has covered the entire sides of train cars, he said. 
Boston police will also be on heightened alert this weekend, Gillespie said. 
Posted by the Boston Globe City & Region Desk at 12:16 PM


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## HousingCop (May 14, 2004)

*A firm grasp on the forearm on a hard surface with a ball-peen hammer to several of the fingers would go a looooooong way in cutting down and curtailing grafitti and vandalism on the T system. *


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## Stevec (Dec 29, 2006)

Why can't they use there artistic ablility for good. Some of the murals are amazing.


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## DeputyFife (Jun 28, 2005)

*Police on alert as graffiti artists gather in city*

By John R. Ellement and Stephanie Ebbert, Globe Staff | February 10, 2007
They were five men with 39 cans of spray paint, speeding away from the Braintree MBTA Station early yesterday, police said.
Transit Police, unamused by street artistry in recent weeks, were not taking any chances.
They arrested the men -- two from other states and two Germans and a Swiss citizen -- and charged them with conspiracy to tag property. Police are investigating whether the five had already tagged trains in the Forest Hills train yard and were bent on leaving more graffiti in Braintree.
Adding to police concern that a concerted campaign was underway was a gathering of as many as 300 graffiti artists planned for tonight at a secret location in South Boston.
"We really anticipate the potential for serious damage over the next 72 hours," said Lieutenant Mark Gillespie, who added that T police had increased patrols and publicized the arrests yesterday to discourage other taggers.
It was the second time in less than two weeks that authorities had grappled with an underground artistic event. On Jan. 31, battery-charged light boards promoting a television cartoon set off a bomb scare that confounded authorities and snarled traffic for hours.
Organizers of tonight's event -- who have advertised that the event will feature water-based graffiti art painted live on models -- insisted that they were not trying to drum up publicity for their show or to encourage illegal graffiti around the region. They said the event was drawing artists from across the country, Europe, and South America.
"I sympathize [with the police], because for them, they feel like there's a bunch of graffiti writers getting together, so Fort Point is going to be destroyed," said one organizer, Curtis McMillan, an online gallery owner who said he hoped that tonight's event would help raise money for legitimate gallery space for graffiti artists.
"That's some negative attention," Charlie Levine, who owns Next Generation Media in Braintree, the promoter of tonight's event, said of the arrests. "I'd like to be able to have a peaceful event that doesn't end up with too many flashing lights."
Transit police said they have been on increased alert and searching for taggers since Jan. 17, when a new wave of graffiti writers began striking trains parked in yards in the Boston area. The plans for a gathering of graffiti artists, promoted online, further intensified their concern .
Neil Madden, a lawyer for one of the five men charged yesterday, said they were not aware of the graffiti event. He said the Germans were in Boston visiting friends and sightseeing.
In another echo of the cartoon scare, a visual artists' group that includes Peter Berdovsky, one of the men charged in the bomb scare last week, was scheduled to perform, until computer equipment needed for the show malfunctioned, said organizer Curtis McMillan. Berdovsky, reached by phone, declined to comment.
Under state law, graffiti artists can be charged with tagging property or even showing "the intent to deface" property. If they are convicted, the charge could carry a potential penalty of up to two years in a prison and a fine of up to $1,500, or three times the property damage, whichever is greater. They could lose their driver's licenses for one year and be required to pay for cleanup.
The five men were allegedly spotted about 1:45 a.m. Friday, when an MBTA police officer patrolling at the Braintree station saw a red sport utility vehicle leaving a secluded area in a suspicious manner, said Deputy Chief Paul MacMillan.
After stopping the SUV, which smelled of paint fumes, the officer saw numerous paint cans and fresh paint on the occupants' clothing; the paint colors matched those that vandals had used at Forest Hills Station earlier that night, police said in court papers.
The men have not been not charged in connection with the Forest Hills vandalism, authorities said.
Last night, transit police were trying to obtain a search warrant to examine digital cameras and cellphones found in the SUV. A satellite mapping device in the SUV highlighted train yards in the area that have been targeted by taggers in recent weeks, police said.
The men arraigned in Quincy District Court yesterday were identified as Marius Schmieling, 25, of Dortmund, Germany; Tom J. Grundmann, 24, of Berlin; Christophe S. Chevalier, 27, of Petit Lancy, Switzerland; Michael R. Zieper, 22, of Waunakee, Wisconsin; and Philip Lozito, 23, of Charlotte, N.C.
They pleaded not guilty and were released on personal recognizance.
Judge Diane Moriarty banned all five from MBTA property or riding the T and ordered that the three foreign citizens surrender their passports until the case is resolved.
After the arraignment, the five stood in the courthouse lobby with their lawyers and declined to answer reporters' questions.
Lozito, who bit his fingernails during the court proceedings, had a scarf pulled up to his nose and a red checkered hooded sweatshirt and told a female Boston Herald photographer after his arraignment that he wanted to go on a date with her.
Mac Daniel and Andrew C. Ryan of the Globe staff contributed to this report. Stephanie Ebbert can be reached at [email protected]; John Ellement can be reached at [email protected].


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## justanotherparatrooper (Aug 27, 2006)

Adding to police concern that a concerted campaign was underway was a gathering of as many as 300 graffiti artists planned for tonight at a secret location in South Boston...
called vandalism, unless the property owner pays them to do it!


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## Guest (Feb 12, 2007)

stevec is right......what a waste of talent.


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