Suspect Arrested After Trump's Hollywood Star Is Destroyed
President Donald Trump’s star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame was destroyed early Wednesday morning, allegedly by a man wielding a pickax.
Los Angeles police told The Hollywood Reporter that a call came into the department around 3:33 a.m. about the star’s destruction.
Police added that a 25-year-old man had been taken into custody around 6:20 a.m. regarding the incident and had been booked for felony vandalism.
Donald Trump’s star completely destroyed along the Hollywood walk of fame. pic.twitter.com/b1bpLhmG2X
— Ryan Parker (@TheRyanParker) July 25, 2018
KNBC reporter Jonathan Gonzalez tweeted: “Multiple people — including police — tell me a man walked up with a guitar case and pulled out the pick axe.
“Then, it’s believed, he called police himself to report it, but left the scene before they got here.”
https://twitter.com/JonathanNBCLA/status/1022076425308753920
Wednesday’s incident marks the second time Trump’s star has been completely destroyed.
In October 2016, 53-year-old James Lambert Otis was taped taking a pickax and a sledgehammer to the iconic symbol.
Otis later pleaded no contest to felony vandalism and was fined $4,400 for the damage and was sentenced to three years probation and 20 days of community service, Politico reported.
“Trump’s star has experienced minor vandalism before, such as being spray painted and having a tiny wall built around it,” according to Politico.
The star is located near the highly trafficked Dolby Theater (site of the Academy Awards ceremony) on Hollywood Boulevard.
Deadline reported that is was dedicated in 2007 in recognition of Trump’s work on the successful NBC reality television program “The Apprentice.”
There are more than 2,500 stars on the Walk of Fame, which are maintained by the Hollywood Historic Trust and chosen by the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce.
The Chamber responded to a petition to remove Trump’s star from the Walk in 2016 by saying it was staying.
“Once a star has been added to the Walk, it is considered a part of the historic fabric of the Hollywood Walk of Fame,” Leron Gubler, the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce president, told the Los Angeles Times. “Because of this, we have never removed a star from the Walk.”
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