Police Continue Probe Into Vandalism At Flag Memorial

Police Detective Jason Frank said this week that police are continuing their investigation into a recent vandalism incident in Dodgingtown in which someone used several liquid paints to deface a private US flag memorial to the victims of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Police are seeking leads from the public on who defaced the memorial on the property of Howard Lasher at 68 Dodgingtown Road (Route 302).

The memorial consists of the painted image of a US flag on six tree trunks in memory of those who lost their lives in the September 11 attacks in New York City, at the Pentagon, and in Pennsylvania.

Sometime between 3 pm on December 6, and 7:30 am on December 7, someone went onto the Lasher property and threw five different colored paints onto the flag image and also smashed two floodlights used to illuminate the flag at night.

“The flag memorial which has become an icon within the town and seen by tens of thousands driving through our town or in countless books, magazines, and media was commissioned by Mr Lasher ten years ago and painted by well-known artist David Merrill in honor of those who lost their lives in the tragedy of  9/11 and all the men and women who have given their lives in defense of our nation,” Det Frank said in a statement.

“The uproar caused by this senseless act has many of the citizens of Newtown furious and hoping for a  resolution to the crime.  Anyone with information to this crime is urged to call the Newtown Police Department in the strictest of confidence at 203-426-5841 and ask to speak to someone in the detective division,” Det Frank added. 

Water from a low-pressure hose was used to wash away much of the vandalism damage that occurred in the incident, police have said.