A man suspected of spray painting swastika symbols at multiple locations in the Mendenhall Valley earlier this month has been arrested, the Juneau Police Department announced Friday.
Ryan Jaravata, 41, was arrested at about 11:40 a.m. Friday at a home on Mendenhall Loop Road on an outstanding $250 Alaska State Troopers warrant for third-degree criminal mischief, a class C felony, according to a JPD information release and the Alaska Court System’s online database. No court hearing for him had been scheduled as of late Friday afternoon.
Jaravata was taken by JPD officers to Lemon Creek Correctional Center.
The arrest followed an investigation that started Oct. 2 when JPD received a report the Mendenhall Valley Public Library had been vandalized with graffiti, followed by a report of a similar incident at Rotary Park, according to the department’s release.
“During the investigation, the officer determined red spray paint had been used to paint swastika symbols in the bathroom of the library, on electrical boxes outside of the library, in Rotary Park on the pavement under a pavilion and on the trail between Rotary Park and Cinema Drive,” the release states.
JPD also published photos on its official Facebook page of a man spray painting a sign at the Mendenhall Glacier Recreation Area, stating he was a suspect in that incident and the others. Erann Kalwara, a JPD spokesperson, said Friday department policy regarding arrested suspects means she cannot not confirm Jaravata is the person in the photos posted online.
• Contact Mark Sabbatini at mark.sabbatini@juneauempire.com or (907) 957-2306.
