Update March 16, 2023: James Ryan faces three felony counts of criminal mischief as a hate crime and three felony counts of aggravated harassment in the first degree, the Manhattan District Attorney's Office said; more here.
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Update December 16, 2021: NYPD has announced the arrest of James T. Ryan; more here.
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A series of swastikas were recently found in spots across Lower Manhattan — including the Charging Bull on Wall Street — and now cops are hunting for the vandal.
Surveillance video released by the NYPD shows the suspect allegedly drawing a single swastika on a pillar at the entrance to City Hall, at the corner of Beekman Street and Park Row, around 6:30 p.m. Monday.
The footage shows the poncho-wearing man drawing the antisemitic symbol, stepping away and then turning back to take one last glance at what he’d done before walking off.
The next day around 10:10 p.m., the vandal spray-painted a swastika on the Wall Street Bull in front of 25 Broadway, cops said.
Then he took off, heading north on Morris Street.
The suspect’s first target was a construction site on Maiden Lane near Liberty Place, cops said.
He drew three swastikas on a wall around 1 p.m. Dec. 3, and then took off, police said.
Cops say the vandal appears to walk with a limp and was last seen wearing a black and gray poncho, black backpack, black jeans and multicolored sneakers.
The NYPD’s Hate Crimes Task Force is investigating.