Graffiti artists knocked several cars off an M train, made them completely unreadable from top to bottom with colorful tags, and caused tens of thousands of dollars in property damage, the MTA said Wednesday.
A video posted to Instagram on Monday shows the subway – with cartoon-like characters and images of a skyline exposed by a brick wall – chugging along the tracks of an unspecified elevated Big Apple station.
According to the MTA, officials discovered the vandalism around 6:50 AM Monday.
The vandals apparently hit the train in a so-called stowage area in Queens near Forest Hills-71st Avenue Station, which is under the responsibility of the NYPD to patrol, the transportation agency said, noting that the incident had been reported to police. .
The graffiti train has since been decommissioned.
“Vandalism costs New Yorkers – it robs customers of service while cars are being cleaned, it requires transit workers to scrub graffiti instead of taking care of their regular duties, and it costs taxpayers money that can be used to improve service,” said MTA spokesman Shams Tarek. The Post in a statement.
“We are working with the NYPD to investigate this latest case of intruders who have caused tens of thousands of dollars in damage, and we will seek restitution from anyone found guilty.”