Anti-LAPD graffiti likely inspired by Dorner, police say

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A tagger who spray-painted an expletive about the LAPD across a wall in El Monte probably was inspired by Christopher Dorner, the fugitive who died in a gun battle, police said Friday.

“He’s got a lot of supporters,” El Monte police Cpl. Aram Choe said of Dorner. “And even though his most recent incident was with the San Bernardino County sheriffs, it all sources back to his grievances with the LAPD.”

A homeowner in the 4800 block of Dyson Street called police about 10:30 a.m. Friday and reported that a 3-foot-by-6-foot message to Los Angeles police was scrawled in black spray paint across his wall next to the sidewalk.

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“It was obviously a display of displeasure, and we’re speculating it was in response to the Christopher Dorner issue,” Choe said. “There seems to be a cult following with this guy. They’re really backing his story. It happens inevitably with every high-profile arrest.”

Police say Dorner, 33, killed four people in the last two weeks, including two police officers, before he died in a shootout Tuesday in a cabin in Big Bear. An online manifesto that police say was written by Dorner said his firing from the LAPD years ago was motivation for his deadly run and told witnesses who encountered him along the way that he was trying to clear his name. Choe said he didn’t know if there’s been an increase of anti-police graffiti across El Monte or Los Angeles County since Dorner’s case made headlines, but he has seen the messages online.

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“This isn’t a new phenomenon or something,” Choe said. “For a guy like Christopher Dorner getting supported, there may be some underlying facts behind it, someone got a ticket and feels vindicated” by him.

The graffiti has since been removed, Choe said.

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-- Joseph Serna