WASHINGTON — The D.C. police are searching for those responsible for spraying paintballs on a mural depicting 11 U.S. presidents in Northwest D.C.
The mural, on the side of the Middle Eastern restaurant Mama Ayesha’s, was vandalized with red stains on the crotch area of each president early Wednesday, NBC Washington reports.
“It’s sad. My family has worked hard for this restaurant — blood, sweat and tears over the past 55 years,” Mama Ayesha’s manager Amir Abu-El-Hawa tells NBC Washington.
Abu-El-Hawa isn’t the only one saddened by the vandalism. The mural’s creator, award-winning artist Karlisima Rodas, says she’s devastated. “I was on the scaffold for three years,” she says.
The mural cost $25,000, which was divided between Mama Ayesha’s and the city.
Abu-El-Hawa says the mural has been vandalized before, but not this badly. A surveillance video in the area may help investigators find the person responsible, he says.
In hopes of restoring the mural, the restaurant set up a Go Fund Me page with a goal of $5,000.
Watch the report from NBC Washington:
