ANAHEIM : Break-In Gets More olice Attention

An Orange County gay rights activist whose home was ransacked and left spray-painted with anti-homosexual slogans said he believes the incident is now being investigated as a hate crime by Anaheim police.

Jeff LeTourneau said he is convinced that police, rather than treating the incident as a “common break-in,” have given the ransacking and vandalism added interest because two more detectives, who were accompanied by a police photographer, visited his home on Wednesday, one day after it was spray-painted and $10,000 worth of electronic equipment and jewelry were taken.

Police Lt. Ray Welch could not confirm whether the department had changed its investigation from a “routine burglary.”

Welch, however, said that the investigation has been stepped up, and that police will begin canvassing LeTourneau’s West Forest Lane neighborhood for further information.

LeTourneau, founder and chairman of the Orange County Visibility League, one of the county’s most vocal gay and lesbian rights groups, said he was overwhelmed by the amount of support he and his roommates have received from Anaheim residents.

“We’re in the process of rebuilding what we have lost, but the good thing is that there has been an outpouring of support from people that we don’t even know.”

LeTourneau said one person delivered a portable television to his house.

He said he has received death threats in the past and threats that his house would be burned to the ground.

“I believe that whether the ransacking is part of a bigger picture or an isolated part, people are acting violently against gays and lesbians,” he said.