Criminal Damage: Nasty Geneva Insult Spray-Painted on High School Wall, and Other Reports

The criminal damage to property in this week's Geneva police blotter involves an urn, a mailbox and an exterior wall of Geneva High School. Here's the trifecta: 

Criminal Damage to Property Over $500—Someone spray painted an anti-Geneva epithet on the exterior wall of the gymnasium just north of the doors, Geneva police reports said. School District 304 staff told police the paint probably will not come off entirely but they should be able to wash enough off to make it illegible, the report said. The wall might need resurfacing or replacement, which is why the damage was categorized as "more than $500."

Criminal Damage to Property Under $300—Someone damaged a mailbox of a home in the 800 block of Third Avenue sometime around 5:15 a.m. Sept. 29, reports said. (Third Avenue is on Geneva's East Side, not to be confused with Third Street in downtown Geneva.) According to police reports, the homeowner was awakened by a loud sound, which he at first thought was a gunshot, but when he looked out his window, he didn’t see anything suspicious. He went outside at around 9 a.m. and discovered the mailbox had been “blown up,” reports said. Police found paper residue that looked like fireworks packaging, then checked the neighborhood but saw no further evidence of mailbox damage. The mailbox was valued at around $125.

Criminal Damage to Property Under $300—Someone pushed over a decorative concrete urn in the 800 block of Chandler Avenue sometime between 8 p.m. and 8:50 p.m. Sept. 19, Geneva police reports said. The 18-inch-tall urn, which was being used for a flower planter, broke into several pieces, reports said. The urn’s estimated value was $300.

If you have information about this or any other crime in Geneva, please contact the Geneva Police Department at 630-232-4736.