Antisemitic graffiti was found near Anne Frank memorial on the last Saturday of Hanukkah
"With it being Hanukkah, I didn't really want anybody seeing it," Kevin Wallior, who spotted the graffiti and called police, told Insider.
NIGEL TREBLIN/AFP via Getty Images
- Tunnels near an Anne Frank memorial in Idaho were covered in antisemitic graffiti.
- A man who spotted them on his walk home was prepared to return the next day to paint over it.
- Officials condemned the message and Boise Parks and Recreation employees ended up painting over it.
Police in Idaho are investigating antisemitic graffiti that was found in tunnels near Idaho's Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial.
On Saturday, the Boise Police Department said employees with the city's parks and recreation department began cleaning up the graffiti as soon as they were informed and police are looking for parties responsible for the graffiti.
The antisemitic vandalism was discovered as millions of Jewish people across the US celebrate Hanukkah.
"We recognize the significance of this being the last Saturday of Hanukkah and we are reaching out to Jewish leaders in our community to let them know we will not stand for such hateful and abhorrent behavior in our city," BPD Chief Ryan Lee said in a tweet.
—Boise PD (@BoisePD) December 4, 2021
Kevin Wallior, a 36-year-old management assistant with the State of Idaho's Division of Veterans Services, told Insider he was walking home from a bar on Friday night when he spotted the graffiti. Wallior said he called the police's non-emergency number to report it.
"With it being Hanukkah, I didn't really want anybody seeing it. I didn't want it hanging around the community for any longer than it need to. I was prepared to fill up on Saturday later in the day and go and paint it myself," he told Insider.
Wallior said he posted a picture of the graffiti on social media and tagged Boise Parks and Recreation. The department ended up painting over the graffiti, which contained swastikas and profanity-laced messages.
"I'm just very appreciative that our community came together and got rid of this quick," Wallior said.
In a statement, Boise Mayor Lauren McLean said the antisemitic graffiti would not be tolerated: "The antisemitic messages contained in the graffiti found along the Greenbelt put a literal and figurative stain on our community," McLean said.
Insider was unable to reach the BPD at the time of publication.