'Revok' used website and Twitter posts to promote graffiti, authorities say

 

The reputed tagger who was arrested by L.A. County Sheriff's deputies after making a guest appearance over the weekend at a grafitti art store promoted his name -- and the work of other vandals -- through blogs and Twitter posts, authorities said.

Jason Williams, 32, faces the possibility of multiple felony charges after his arrest on suspicion of illegally possessing vandalism tools and a counterfeit Los Angeles Police Department badge, and receiving stolen property.

Sheriff's deputies say Williams, who uses the tagging name REVOK, was paid $1,000 to appear as the guest of honor Sunday at the 33rd Graffiti Art Store, which was exhibiting a spraypaint brand used by taggers.

That wasn't Williams' only entrepreneurial stroke, according to deputies. His revok1 website sold T-shirts for $30 with such messages as "Build and destroy" and "Crime in the City," his bestseller.

The most expensive item was a "Zoo York" skateboard design and an untitled print retailing for $100.

-- Andrew Blankstein

Photo: Jason Williams' REVOK1 Twitter page

Comments

[Stop real crime]

Los Angeles has enough real criminals - go catch them. Leave artists making a living for themselves alone.

Police think they're actually doing something, attacking a known graffiti writer. What a great "example" you're making. Guess what? ...the youth will never stop writing graffiti.

This is all smoke and mirrors by LA county sheriffs. Who's running for re-election? Thinking you're going to get a notch on your belt by "cleaning up the streets"? What a joke!

How about putting the LITTLE we have in tax revenue from our BANKRUPT state into more productive uses? No, that would make too much sense.

Don't be fooled.

[serban]

so why is he being arrested?
it makes no sense
is it becaues they say he encourages vandalism or because he had paint with him and a stolen police badge?

[Chunk]

Ridiculous. This guy isn't some little tagger. He's an artist, and when one of his pieces goes up, it beautifies the area it's in. What a waste of police time and money.

[Zach]

I'm so tired of hearing defenders saying, "Go after real criminals." He is a real criminal, tagging costs our city millions in cleanup every year. The youth may never stop writing graffiti, but maybe this'll remind adults like Jason that they're no longer children. He can do more prints and skateboards if he wants to be respected by adults, but he'll be treated like a child if responsible adults have to keep cleaning his unwanted "art" off their buildings.

[He Main]

HA! if u dont know why he is being arrested u are an idiot. He makes it pretty obvious that he breaks the law on a daily basis!!

[Ex]

See the thing is Zach, he might still go bombing once in a while but he IS making his money on things such as shirts and guest appearances. Its the same thing with Cope2. He's one of the most well-known graffiti artists and he was asked by time mag. to do a piece on a billboard. The older graffiti artists are doing there own thing to make money. The police should be more worried about catching the young kids doing it rather than wasting their time on the big guys since doing so will cause the younger generations to be infuriated and go out and bomb more, i.e "Free REVOK".

Another thing, it might cost money to clean buildings but like I said, its the younger kids who are doing that. The older Artist do pieces which actually help out a community.

[KZKZ3232]

OKAY WELL MY LAST COMMENT DIDNT GET PUT UP AND IT WAS LIKE A 3 PARAGRAPH DETAIL ON HOW I FEEL ABOUT THIS FREEDOM OF SPEECH "REVOKED" ON THIS SITE.. JUST LIKE THEY "REVOKED" REVOK!
SO HMM... no wonder why this world is going to the dumps NOBODY RESPECTS the FIRST AMENDMENT (FREEDOM OF SPEECH)

im DEF. not typing my LONG EXTENSIVE 3paragraph huGE SUMMARY AGAIN... BUT WHAT EXACTLY DID THEY GET REVOK FOR? he ALREADY DID HIS TIME... THEY CANT JUST GRAB HIM AND THROW him IN A COP CAR for being at an ART GALLERY / PROMO SHOW... so whats the deal... LA is going to ELIMINATE ARE FREEDOM OF SPEECH or (REVOK IT) RESPECT LESS TO THE GOVERNMENT AFTER THIS STUNT!

[Stop real crime]

Hey "Zach", the police arrested Revok while he was painting a commissioned LEGAL mural.

How is that criminal? Get your facts straight before you bump your gums, dummy.

[1ForReVok]

Revok is in fact, legend. He's known world wide. If anything, he's beautifying LA. I agree - go catch the "real criminals" and let the artists be free. It's wasting taxpayers money, not police money. To the poster telling these artists to grow up - these guys aren't your neighborhood wannabe kids (perhaps yours) using Walmart spray paint tagging block letters and a couple of stick figures - this is art making a difference. Making statements, donating time, money and thier art fighting for causes, and doing more for your community than you are. Somewhere there are killers taking the life of someone someone loves. There are perverts taking children. There is someone getting robbed. There is real crime going on. Shame on you.

[BREAK.1.BEW/TSB]

Meanwhile people are being raped and murdered by real criminals, and our own government leads us to believe that we need the swine flu vaccine. Sad state of affairs.

[APU]

Vandals are vandals, dress them up in nice words and call them "artists". But the fact remains that they scribble that they believe to be art on other people’s property. That is illegal, which makes him a vandal.

[A-P-U]

Transport Authorised Officers from the Asset Protection Unit (APU) were commended this week by Victoria Police for their determined and relentless investigation into an internationally known vandal from the United States that came to Australia with the intention to, in his words, ‘....make graffiti history.’ The pathetic vandal, who goes by the name of Revok, was seized in a dramatic arrest by police at Melbourne airport as he was about to board his flight home to the USA via Sydney. He was charged with graffiti vandalism-related offences and remanded in custody.
This idiot brought himself to the attention of the APU when he vandalised one of our trains in the Macaulay sidings. Although two men were apprehended that night, Revok was unfortunately not one of them. The APU tasked him and began to investigate. Like all graffiti vandals, his misguided obsession for notoriety was also his vulnerability, and in the case of Revok his downfall.
Using a variety of investigative methods, the APU was able to establish his identity, and from that his movements were tracked. As data was being collated, important information came to the APU that Revok was heading out of the country the same day. Then followed a timely phone call to Victoria Police. The result was that as Revok was heading to his plane thinking he was home and hosed, he was arrested, charged and remanded in custody.
His case was heard at the Melbourne Magistrates’ Court the following day where he was found guilty on all counts. He received a nine-month suspended sentence and was ordered to pay $15,340 in restitution.
‘This result is a great example of cross-organisation cooperation and team work. The collaboration between the Victoria Police and the AO department is to be commended, said Jim Dimitrioski, Customer Service Manager for Authorised Officers and security. ‘Most importantly, a message has now been sent to would-be vandals that Australia, and in particular Melbourne and its trains, are not easy targets.’

[all for those]

you people need to quit being so up tight!! lol we are talking about paint on a wall that can be repaired with paint lol people have been doing this for years all you people that let it bother you need to get over it ! someone is doing something productive with their self and making a living get over it ! its not drugs, rape or murder . and 90% of the time has really nothing with gangs thats just your lame stereotype and its old so find something else better to waste you life with and wake up !!!!!! youre dumb!

[Zach]

Hey, "Stop real Crime," try to read what I wrote and not be a "dummy." I don't care what he was doing at the time of arrest, I'm just glad they got him. Al Capone was busted on tax evasion after all.

"Ex," why should the police turn a blind eye to him just because his arrest will motivate more hoods to act out? It's a weak justice system that's afraid of enforcing the laws on everyone, and a weak society that'd shift the blame to it for doing its job. If a con man becomes a security consultant, do we give him a pass if he turns a legitimate profit but still scams people now and then? No, we bust him and tell the jerk to clean up his act, and when he does so is all on him.

I just don't think the fact that there are worse criminals, or worse taggers, out there justifies the double-standard that'd have Revok freed.

[jorden]

Zach - to say that it is ok to arbitrarily arrest a person just because they "know" he has committed crimes previously but they have no proof is absurd. If the police are going to start rounding up every known graffiti writer they would need to round up thousands of legitimate artists many of whom RARELY vandalize things. They keep arresting revok but when is the last time saber was arrested?
He still tags, but he also (along with revok) creates legitimate art that is sold in galleries, and even has an section in the natural history museum in LA. An exibit based on a historic piece of art in LA and graffiti history that has recently been covered in white paint (for 6.5 million dollars in a city that cant buy school books). The government cant say something is wrong when such a large portion of society accept as being positive, and they cant arbitrarily decide when to punish people and when not to.