Wannabe Actor Charged With Vandalizing George Floyd Statue in New York
A wannabe actor has been charged with vandalizing the George Floyd statue that was recently installed in New York’s Union Square Park.
The NYPD Hate Crimes division announced earlier this week that Micah Beals — who, under the stage name Micah Femia, had small roles on TV shows like Parks and Recreation and CSI: NY over a decade ago, according to IMDB — was charged in the second-degree criminal mischief in the October 3rd incident, which occurred just days after the monument’s relocation to Union Square in late September.
Surveillance video from the incident allegedly shows Beals standing near the statues — other monuments include tributes to John Lewis and Breonna Taylor — before skateboarding toward the Floyd statue and whipping a cup filled with gray paint at it. Beals then skated away from the scene.
Beals was arraigned Tuesday and released soon after, the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office told CNN. His next court date is scheduled for November 1st. The Hill reports that Beals was previously arrested and charged with breaking curfew in Washington, D.C., on January 6th, the day of the Capitol riots.
According to the criminal complaint, the cost to temporarily restore the Floyd statue — created for Confront Arts’ SEEINJUSTICE exhibit — following the vandalism was $2,000, while it will cost $20,000 to fully restore the bronze bust. After the incident, a team of volunteers attempted to remove the gray paint from the statue.
“They went to the hardware and bought supplies out of their own pockets,” Confront Art co-founder Andrew Cohen said (via CNN). “This is inspiring teamwork and support from the community.”
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Daniel Kreps, Khareem Sudlow
