Vandals Paint Hate Crime Symbols in Church Office

In what has been classified as Glendale’s fourth hate crime of the year, intruders painted a pentagram and a swastika on the walls of a Montrose church office during a weekend burglary and vandalism spree.

Glendale Police Agent Chris Loop said the intruders apparently used a passkey between midnight and 7:30 a.m. Saturday to enter the youth pastor’s office at Christian Life Church, 3013 Montrose Ave.

No arrests had been made by midweek.

The intruders vandalized the office with blue, red and white paint that the church had purchased two days earlier to spruce up a preschool classroom. The circled pentagram, commonly used in Satanic worship, and the swastika were each about three feet wide and painted in red, Loop said.

“They are hate-crime symbols, no doubt about it,” he said.

The Los Angeles County Human Relations Commission reported last week that hate crimes targeting racial groups, houses of worship and sexual orientations were up significantly countywide during the first six months of 1990, contrasted with the same period last year. But Loop said Glendale, which recorded eight hate crimes last year, has experienced fewer incidents this year.

At the Montrose church, the intruders took microphones, a camera, computer programs and a printer worth a reported total of $1,850. They also caused $6,700 in damage to clothing, electronic equipment and office furnishings.