TOWN OF NIAGARA, N.Y. (WKBW) — A 61-year-old man has pleaded guilty to second-degree criminal mischief as a hate crime after a Town of Niagara family's fence was vandalized with violent, racist graffiti in May 2022.
The Niagara County District Attorney's Office announced that 61-year-old Howard Murphy admitted to vandalizing the fence on May 16, 2022, two days after the mass shooting at Tops in Buffalo. He was arrested a few days after the incident.
Niagara County Sheriff's Office
“This was not just a property crime. This was a hate crime meant to terrorize a family. To have someone deliver that message, in the climate created by the events of 2 days before, was a traumatic event for this family. They were in real fear that the defendant, or someone else, would take action along the lines of the message this defendant painted on their fence.”
- Niagara County District Attorney Brian D. Seaman
Murphy is set to return to court on April 19 for sentencing.
