The Barometer Online

Issue date: 2/21/07 Section: News

Media Credit: Luke Wenker New graffiti, which has recently been showing up around downtown Corvallis, is believed to be in response to the graffiti-related arrest of Colin Wonnacott.

A 24-year-old Corvallis man and former OSU student was arrested Thursday on 48 counts of criminal mischief related to a month-long investigation into graffiti around Corvallis, police said.

Colin Wonnacott was sent to jail after being arrested in his home and was released the same day.

Wonnacott is charged with 14 counts of criminal mischief in the first degree and 34 counts of criminal mischief in the second degree.

Corvallis Police Sgt. Jim Zessin said that after receiving many complaints of graffiti in the downtown area, police conducted an investigation.

"The graffiti we had been investigating was very similar in nature," Zessin said.

Wonnacott's design "duone" appeared many places in the downtown area and were then connected to him.

During the investigation, Zessin said the police looked for the design online and found Wonnacott's Web site.

Zessin described Wonnacott's tag as a face with a "D" in it.

"He uses black spray paint primarily - a square with two eyes, the left eye larger than the right, an upside down face, a very comic strip-looking face," Zessin said.

Forty-eight tags were found during the month-and-a-half investigation, Zessin said.

"He's been quite active," Zessin said.

He said the damage will be more than $1,000, "not just for the inconvenience, but also cleaning up the graffiti."

Through a search warrant for Wonnacott's house, police gathered all the "duone" designs, which were consistent with what was on the walls downtown, Zessin said.

In a 2005 Barometer article, Wonnacott was quoted saying, "To a certain extent, writing 'graf' is a way to say 'I am here,' because none of us really own anything, or have control over anything."

Catherine Mater, of Mater Engineering Limited, offered a wall for public graffiti in the 1990s to reduce vandalism around town.

"Of the many, many artists that used the wall - they all respected the law and took care of the property," Mater said.

She added that she is still hoping for a new wall to be developed near the skate park downtown.

"If there's an opportunity to establish another graffiti wall in the community, I know I'll be at the forefront of helping to do that," Mater said.

The Gazette-Times reported Monday that a large amount of graffiti covered part of downtown Corvallis Sunday night.

Zessin said police believe it is in response to Wonnacott's arrest.

"We believe it's possibly friends of his from what they are writing," Zessin said.

Police are still collecting evidence in that case.

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