Police: Memorial officer statue in Virginia vandalized
Associated Press
Richmond, Va. — A memorial to police in Richmond, Virginia has been vandalized with a message referring to the police killing of a black man in Louisiana.
A large red “X’’ was spray-painted on the torso of the statue of an officer carrying a child, and “Justice for Alton” is written on the stones below, an apparent reference to 37-year-old Alton Sterling of Baton Rouge.
Richmond Police Deputy Chief Steve Drew told the Richmond Times-Dispatch that people have left bouquets of flowers at the statue in Byrd Park in the memory of the five white officers killed by a black sniper in Dallas.
The chief says the statue is expected to be restored within 24 hours.