The Dane County District Attorney’s Office charged four people with felony graffiti charges following a year-long University of Wisconsin Police Department investigation into a string of graffiti incidents UWPD said caused “extensive damage” across campus.
Police found evidence “‘related to the graffiti”’ during the search, alongside two handguns and an AR-15, according to a UWPD statement.
Police investigated eight separate graffiti cases over the last year and a half totaling $10,000 in damages across campus on East Campus Mall, Bascom Hall and Library Mall. The incident listed as causing the most extensive damage came last September, when red paint was found on the Hagenah Fountain, Abraham Lincoln statue and other places around campus.
UWPD executed a search warrant around 4 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 14, arresting three people and transporting them to Dane County Jail. At this time it is unclear when the fourth person named in the release was arrested.
Zebulun Fazel, Genevieve Karamanski, Kareem Mayouf and William Wambles are charged with both felony and misdemeanor graffiti. Karamanski is also charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct, and Fazel both misdemeanor disorderly conduct and misdemeanor criminal damage.
Other occurrences of vandalism depicted in photos shared by UWPD show the words “UW blood on your hands” and “divest now,” likely referring to university divestment from Israel.
Though none of the four arrested are “currently affiliated” with UW-Madison, some are alumni of the school.
Annika Bereny is the campus news editor for The Daily Cardinal. She previously served as the special pages editor. As a staff writer, she's written in-depth on campus news specializing in protest policy, free speech and historical analysis. She has also written for state and city news. She is a History and Journalism major. Follow her on Twitter at @annikabereny.
