Man arrested after missing ‘O’ from Tacoma police sign found in his pocket, documents say

TACOMA, Wash. — A man has been charged after police said he damaged a sign at Tacoma Police Headquarters and put concrete in the main gate, creating a risk that the gate could be damaged and delay emergency responses, according to court documents.

Marvel Walker Jr. was charged in Pierce County Superior Court with second-degree malicious mischief, third-degree malicious mischief and second-degree criminal trespass. The charges were filed Tuesday.

According to court documents, officers received a report around 2:07 a.m. Monday that someone was damaging the main entry and exit gate at Tacoma Police Headquarters at 3701 South Pine Street.

Before an officer arrived, police said large pieces of concrete had been placed in the gate structure and could have broken the gate if it was opened.

The officer wrote that Walker was standing near the gate when he arrived and was seen holding a piece of concrete over his head before dropping it over the fence onto police property.

When the officer told Walker they were checking to see if the gate was broken, Walker said it was not and told the officer to use a fob to open it, according to the report.

Police said the concrete had not been removed at the time, and the officer believed opening the gate would have damaged it.

During a frisk, Walker pulled a piece of black-coated metal from his hoodie pocket and said, “and an ‘O’ because I found it on the ground,” according to court documents.

He told the officer he found it near the police department sign.

After Walker was arrested, the officer checked the sign at the entrance to the police department’s public parking lot and found fresh damage to several letters.

Police said the “O” was missing from the word “POLICE” and matched the piece Walker had in his pocket.

Walker was taken to the Pierce County Jail.