Suspects arrested in connection with vandalism of Jackson statue
Two people are under arrest after police say they caught them trying to vandalize the statue of "Stonewall” Jackson.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA. (WVIR) - Two people are under arrest after Charlottesville police say they caught them trying to vandalize the statue of Confederate General Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson.
Police say they watched two men break through the orange barrier around the base of the statue in Court Square Park just before 3:30 a.m. Thursday, December 19.
Thirty-one-year-old Nicolas McCarthy-Rivera and 44-year-old Jesse Tobias Beard are charged with felony vandalism and misdemeanor trespassing. Both have been released on bail, according to court records.
Beard had to pay a fine for obstructing free passage when he deliberately blocked officers from providing safe passage for a group of demonstrators along Preston Avenue last year on the one year anniversary August 12.
McCarthy-Rivera was one of several protesters charged with impeding traffic during a protest on June 8, 2018.
One of the advocates for keeping the Confederate statues of Jackson and General Robert E. Lee up says he’s glad at least some people were caught in connection to the crime.
“I am very thankful for the police, because I know they have been diligently investigating these series of crimes,” Attorney Charles Weber and member of the Monument Fund said. “This is not the first time this has happen, obviously. It’s happened multiple times in the past, and I know they’ve been concerned about who’s doing it.”
Anyone with information about the vandalism cases are asked to contact the Charlottesville Police Department at (434) 970-3280 or Crime Stoppers at (434) 977-4000.
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12/19/2019 Release from the Charlottesville Police Department:Police say they’ll release more details later Thursday.
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA - On December 19, 2019, at approximately 0325 hours, Charlottesville Police Department officers arrested two individuals for vandalizing the Thomas “Stonewall” Jackson Statue, located in Court Square Park.
Nicolas McCarthy-Rivera, a 31-year-old resident of Charlottesville, and Jesse Tobias Beard, a 44-year-old resident of Charlottesville, were arrested on location and are charged with felony vandalism and misdemeanor trespassing.
Anyone with information about the vandalism cases are asked to contact the Charlottesville Police Department at (434) 970-3280 or Crime Stoppers at (434) 977-4000.
There is a reward available through Crime Stoppers for information leading to an arrest.
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