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An enterprising tagger linked to more than 100 episodes of graffiti in Burbank, CA, later cleaned up the damage as part of his work for a graffiti removal company that contracts with the city, authorities say.
Enrique Medrano, 53, of North Hollywood, was arrested on the job Thursday (Nov. 8) on suspicion of burglary, vandalism and forgery, police said Friday. He was released late Thursday on $20,000 bail.
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Photos: Graffiti Protective Coatings |
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The graffiti removal company says its own technology helped unmask the employee, who had created—then billed for removal of— more than 100 tags. He was charged Thursday, police said.
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Medrano worked for Graffiti Protective Coatings of Los Angeles. Burbank police credit the company with helping to identify and catch Medrano, and GPC says he was fired immediately.
GPC has contracted with the City of Burbank for more than six years at about $100,000 year, the city said in a press release. “In that time, GPC has proven to be a valued partner in removing graffiti by using cutting-edge technology to provide an effective service at a low cost to taxpayers,” the city said.
‘Unusual Graffiti Activity’
The city said the suspect was nabbed by smart-phone technology that GPC introduced three years ago to streamline workflow. In September, Burbank police “became aware of unusual graffiti activity through their monitoring of the GPC data technology.”
About the same time, GPC management “discovered discrepancies” with Medrano’s work orders. He had billed more than $2,200 for his services, authorities said.
“As the investigation moved forward, GPC stepped up and worked with our investigators to help us resolve this case,” said Captain Denis Cremins of the Burbank Police Department. “We appreciate their cooperation.”
No Cost to Taxpayers
Carla Lenhoff, president of GPC, said in a statement that taxpayers would not “have to pay any costs associated with” Medrano's actions.
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The company advertises "highly skilled service technicians" and said taxpayers would not have to pay for the damage caused by its employee.
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The statement said:
“By partnering with the City of Burbank and Burbank Police Department, we were able to use our proprietary software to swiftly identify and ultimately catch this individual. His actions are not reflective of the principles of our organization or our high operational standards.
“We have zero tolerance for his behavior, and as soon as we learned of the situation, we took immediate action, terminated his employment, and have been fully cooperating with the authorities in their investigation. We will ensure that the city of Burbank and its residents will not have to pay any costs associated with his actions, and are proud to make our community a better place by eradicating graffiti.”
Founded by students at University of Southern California in an entrepreneur class, GPC promises 24/7 availability, 98% minimum color match quality, and one-hour or less response to emergency service requests. The company has more than 1,000 public and private clients.
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