A suspect was caught on camera Saturday defacing the More Justice, More Peace mural in Bastion Square, which had been repainted Wednesday under mounting pressure over its anti-police message.
The controversial mural, which was funded by a City of Victoria grant and unveiled to the public in August, was vandalized with spray paint by a man seen travelling to and from the area on a red and white motorcycle around 10 a.m. Saturday.
The mural, a joint effort by 17 artists, was intended to raise awareness of injustices suffered by Black and Indigenous people and people of colour but it has been divisive due to the inclusion of the acronym ACAB, which stands for for All Cops Are Bad or All Cops Are Bastards.
After weeks of meeting between the artists, the City of Victoria, and the Victoria Police Department, the artists agreed to remove the acronym, and replaced it Wednesday with a black rectangle containing three eagle feathers and the statement: “This letter has been censored by the City of Victoria influenced by the Victoria Police Department. In doing so, Victoria is contributing to the silencing of Black and Indigenous voices and experiences across the land.”
Photos released by police show an adult male, white and about five-foot-eight, defacing the part of the mural that had been revised.
Emails sent to several city councillors for comment about the vandalism Saturday did not receive replies, but the City of Victoria released a statement to the Times Colonist, saying it does not condone such actions and calling on residents “to respect public art.”
A representative for the Victoria Police Department declined to comment on the events of Saturday.
However, in a statement Friday released through his personal Twitter account, Police Chief Del Manak called the suggestion that the city acted under influence from police to have the acronym removed “inaccurate, misinformed and disrespectful.”
In an interview with the Times Colonist on Saturday, mural organizer Charity Williams lambasted Manak for his tweet, suggesting it was incendiary.
“The motivation [for the vandalism] came from Chief Del Manak’s statement,” Williams said. “He knew what he was doing when he made that divisive statement. As soon as I read it, I knew there was going to be violence in this way, and there was — the day after.”
Anyone with information about the vandalism is asked to call the police non-emergency line at 250-995-7654 and select extension 1.. To report what you know anonymously, call Greater Victoria Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
