Huntington Beach police have arrested a suspect after several “Dave Min for Congress” signs were found vandalized Tuesday, including several spray-painted with anti-Asian slurs, authorities said.
Tuesday morning it was reported that Min signs with offensive terms had been vandalized on Lamar Drive and Newland Street in Huntington Beach, said department spokesperson Jessica Cuchilla.
Photos from Min’s campaign showed several signs defaced with racist comments about someone of Asian descent. The incident is being investigated as a potential hate crime, Cuchilla said.
Sen. Dave Min (D-Irvine), the son of Korean immigrants, is running for the 47th Congressional District to fill the seat vacated by Democratic Rep. Katie Porter.
Around 2 p.m., the department responded to a second incident of vandalized Min signs at Magnolia Street and Mediterranean Drive and arrested a suspect, Cuchilla said, adding that she did not know if those signs also contained hate speech.
The suspect, Kevin William Walker, 62, of Fountain Valley, was arrested on suspicion of vandalism of property valued at $400 or more, according to police. It is not yet known if he is connected to the first vandalism incident, Cuchilla said.
Min released a statement saying the recent outpouring of anti-Asian hate was “saddening, but not surprising,” noting it happened a few days after a Donald Trump rally in Huntington Beach on Saturday.
“Unfortunately, in recent years we have seen a sharp rise in hatred due to the xenophobia and racism that have come to define Donald Trump’s MAGA movement,” Min said in a statement. “We have all seen and heard Trump’s anti-Asian rhetoric and his racist comments about Haitian immigrants.”
Min also said Orange County residents are “bombarded with Republican hit pieces from Scott Baugh and MAGA” claiming that because he is the son of immigrants he supports open borders.
Baugh, a Republican former member of the California State Assembly, is running against Min for the 47th District seat. The battleground district could play a key role in determining which party controls Congress in January. According to the California Secretary of State, about 35% of residents are registered Republicans and 35% are registered Democrats.
Read more: Your guide to California’s 47th Congressional District race: Baugh vs. Min
Baugh’s campaign manager, Nic Gerard, told The Times: “We condemn any vandalism of property, including political signaling by any candidate for public office.
“And, as Scott has said repeatedly,” he added, “there is absolutely no room for racism of any kind in America.”
Gerard said if the Baugh campaign became aware of any information about the perpetrators of the vandalism, it would immediately report it to police. He noted that several of Baugh’s signs had also been vandalized recently.
Huntington Beach Mayor Gracey Van Der Mark said in comments to the Daily Pilot that her signs had also been vandalized, then accused Min of sowing division and “race-baiting.”
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This story originally appeared in the Los Angeles Times.
