NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — A vandal or vandals spray-painted swastikas and other hateful graffiti on a veterans memorial in Queens two days after Memorial Day, officials said.
The graffiti was discovered at the Queens Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Elmhurst Park early Wednesday morning, the NYPD said.
Queens Councilman Robert Holden shared photos of the vandalism on Twitter Wednesday afternoon.
"I am deeply disgusted by this cowardly act of vandalism at the Queens Vietnam Veterans Memorial," he wrote. "I offer a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of the sick soul who did it."
No one had been arrested in connection with the vandalism as of Thursday afternoon.
Cuomo on Wednesday night released a statement saying his office would "ensure that the perpetrators are brought to justice."
"Inscribed on the wall of the Queens Vietnam Veterans Memorial are 371 names — 371 proud children of Queens who gave their lives in service of freedom and democracy half a century ago," he said. "These names are an eternal monument to the ideals that unite us as New Yorkers and as Americans, values that are worth fighting and dying for."
"That's why the Memorial's desecration with graffiti and hateful symbols, coming just two days after Memorial Day, isn't just offensive to the memories of these soldiers and to their loved ones — it's antithetical to the moral fiber of our state and our country, and it's an insult to all those who stepped up in service of it," he added.
