Teens charged with hate crimes in spate of anti-Semitic vandalism in Florida
Police say they have arrested four teenagers who are responsible for defacing multiple buildings in Pensacola, Fla. by spray painting them with Nazi symbolism and other anti-Semitic vandalism.
Pensacola police announced the arrests today after two more buildings in the city were vandalized Thursday night, bringing the number of reported incidents to eight in the past two weeks.
Until now, the previous six attacks went unsolved.
Although three of the four suspects are under the age of 18, all are being charged as adults and have been identified by police as:
- Waylon Moon Fowler, 17: Charged with seven counts of felony criminal mischief, enhanced to a hate crime; one count of misdemeanor criminal mischief; one count of felony trespassing in a construction zone.
- Wyatt Fox Fowler, 15: Charged with seven counts of felony criminal mischief, enhanced to a hate crime; one count of misdemeanor criminal mischief; one count of felony trespassing in a construction zone.
- Nicholas Pearce Ferry, 16: Charged with four counts of felony criminal mischief, enhanced to hate crimes; one count of felony trespassing in a construction zone.
- Kessler Alexander Ferry, 18: One count of felony criminal mischief, enhanced to a hate crime.
Police said Wyatt and Nicholas Ferry are brothers, while the Fowlers are not related.
“The extra hard work of investigators and many others in the Pensacola Police Department paid off today,” said Pensacola police chief Eric Randall. “We hope that these arrests can bring comfort and closure not only to those in our Jewish community, but to all citizens of this great city.”
Pensacola police Public Information Officer Mike Wood said surveillance video from the neighborhoods where the attacks occurred helped lead to the arrests.
More arrests are possible, police said.
“We will not tolerate hate crimes in the City of Pensacola,” said Pensacola Mayor D.C. Reeves. “I greatly appreciate our PPD’s superb investigative work in recent days that clearly delivers an important message: if you conduct cowardly acts of hate in this city in an attempt to hurt or intimidate, we will find you and bring you to justice.”
The Pensacola Liberation Center was one of the latest in a string of worship or community centers defaced with Nazi and other anti-Semitic graffiti in Pensacola.
The two latest targets were the Pensacola Liberation Center on West Yonge Street and an Islamic community center on Barrancas Avenue. At the liberation center, Nazi swastikas were painted on the doors, walls and signage.
Officials with the Pensacola Liberation Center made clear in a Facebook post both their disgust with the anti-Semitic attacks, which have included bricks with anti-Semitic messaging being thrown through windows, and their determination to move forward.
“This disgusting, fascist vandalism campaign is an assault on all Jewish, Black, Latino, Asian, and LGBTQ people,” the post read. “It is an assault on all working class people of Pensacola. We will not be intimidated and we will not allow these fascists and Nazis to continue their harassment campaign in our community.”