Man Reprimanded for Spray Painting Graffiti Commits 4 More Serious Crimes
NOVATO — Such indignation indeed. A man caught spray painting graffiti made several bad decisions when someone dared to reprimand and photograph him. His response was to commit four more serious crimes.
At about 4 p.m. on September 12, a passerby noticed a young man spraying graffiti on a wall in the downtown area. The passerby reacted by taking pictures of him in the act, which enraged the graffitist.
In a fit of rage, graffiti man confronted the passerby, grabbed his phone and threatened to kill him for taking pictures. No one got hurt, but the graffiti man ran away with the victim’s phone.
When the victim contacted the police, an officer called the stolen phone, and pretended to be the victim’s son. A meeting was arranged ostensibly to buy back the victim’s phone.
Less than 2 hours later, graffiti man showed up at a designated meeting place, a few blocks away from downtown. The police were waiting nearby for him near the intersection of Lamont and Railroad Avenues.
The graffitist who became a robber, who became an extortionist, anticipated getting cash for the phone. Instead, police had some criminal charges in mind for him.
Rather than collecting money for the stolen phone, officers handcuffed and arrested the suspect for stealing it. Of course, it was a successful meeting from the victim’s point of view—who got his phone back.
Officers booked the suspect, 18-year-old resident of Novato Kristopher Davis-Pillow, at Marin County Jail. His charges are robbery, extortion, possession of stolen property, making criminal threats, and vandalism. His bail is $75,000.
