SPRINGDALE: Allegheny County Police are reviewing an Ames department store videotape from Sept. 8 as part of an investigation into who sprayed racist graffiti on a school wall.
They are looking to see if anyone bought a can of black spray paint that day.
The next day, Sept. 9, police found a can of black spray paint on the grounds of Springdale Junior-Senior High School that police said probably had been used to spray paint racial slurs, the first name of a 17-year-old black Springdale student and a drawing of a noose on the school wall.
The paint can had an Ames price tag on it, said Joe Naviglia Jr., Springdale police chief, and for now, police are assuming it was bought at the Ames in Harmar, the nearest Ames to Springdale.
"If someone (on the video) buys that particular kind of paint, we probably have a good link," Naviglia said. "If they didn't buy the paint for themselves, maybe they bought it for someone else."
Naviglia conceded that it is possible the paint can had been bought prior to Sept. 8. The can has not been dusted for fingerprints because "we're waiting for the county to come back with their findings on the tape" before proceeding with fingerprints, Naviglia said.
No arrests have been made in the graffiti case.
Two people were arrested in another incident the day before the graffiti was discovered that police say was racially motivated.
In that case, two whites chased a 15-year-old black boy and allegedly threatened to kill him. The stalking victim is the brother of the student who was depicted in the graffiti found one day later, Naviglia said.
One of the suspects in that stalking case, Tina Gentile, 18, of Pearl Avenue, Cheswick, was allegedly driving a car with her 17-year-old boyfriend looking for the 15-year-old stalking victim the afternoon of Sept. 8, Naviglia said.
The Valley News Dispatch does not identify victims of crimes or juvenile crime suspects in most cases.
They found the teen in Springdale, and the white boyfriend allegedly got out of the car near Lincoln Avenue and approached the black teen, police said.
The pair never hit the 15-year-old, but they allegedly threatened to assault him, and the boyfriend allegedly threatened to kill him, Naviglia said.
Gentile faces charges of simple assault, harassment and stalking, corruption of minors and criminal conspiracy, police said. Her preliminary hearing is set for 9 a.m. Nov. 14 in front of District Justice David Sosovicka.
The juvenile boyfriend, whom police did not identify because of his age, will be charged in juvenile court, facing the same charges as Gentile as well as one count of ethnic intimidation, Naviglia said.
Police seek help
Springdale Police Chief Joe Naviglia Jr. asks that anyone with information on the racist graffiti to call Harrison Dispatch, at 724-224-3355. He also appealed to Ames employees who might have sold a paint can to a young person on or about Saturday, Sept. 8, to come forward with any information.
Staff writer Leslie Suhr contributed to this report.
