A Toledo woman found herself in police custody Friday after authorities say she spray painted a racial slur, “Hail Trump” and a swastika on the front of her neighbor’s home.
Another neighbor’s surveillance video captured Patricia Edelen as she vandalized the brick-front home with racist graffiti, local station ABC 13 reported. The neighbor, identified only as Chris, said he has had problems with Edelen in the past and installed security cameras because of her previous antics.
“I can see her going across, I can see her shaking a can of spray paint, and we can see this person spraying,” he said of the footage catching Edelen red-handed. ” … We can hear the person spraying and walking back across, and she made multiple trips.”
Authorities said Edelen, 47, had multiple warrants and ran from police as they tried to arrest her last week.
“The officers were forced to make forced entry into her residence and took her into custody without further incident,” Toledo police Sgt. Paul Davis said.
Edelen was charged with three first-degree misdemeanors, including “ethnic intimidation by reason of race, color, religion or national origin; criminal mischief; and criminal damaging or endangering property to cause/create substantial risk of physical harm,” a police report stated.
The vandalism has since been washed away, thanks to the help from several community members and neighbors, according to the new station.
“The good feeling that came from fixing that situation outweighed the initial shock of ‘whoa in my neighborhood?” neighbor Pat Baleras said.
Mayor Wade Kapszukiewicz also addressed the incident in a Facebook post, thanking those who pitched in to clean up the graffiti.
“I want to send a special thank you to the community members who stepped in to remove the hateful messages from the home,” Kapszukiewicz wrote. “They believe, as I do, these messages are not a reflection of their neighborhood or our city.”
“Toledo is a wonderful and welcoming place to raise a family, work and live,” he continued. “At no point should an individual or family feel unsafe or unwelcome because of their race, color, gender, sexual orientation or identity, or for any other personal characteristic that makes up our beautiful diverse city.”
Per the Toledo Blade, Edelen was arraigned in court Monday where a judge continued bond at $25,450 and issued a no-contact order with the victim. She pleaded not guilty to all charges.
