Police: 18-year-old in custody for allegedly vandalizing Bean
An 18-year-old man is in custody for allegedly vandalizing Chicago’s iconic Bean on Friday evening in Millennium Park, police said.
He was spraying graffiti onto the public artwork formally known as “Cloud Gate” about 6:10 p.m. in the 200 block of East Randolph Street when another man, 20, confronted him, according to Chicago police.
The younger man took off, and the older man followed him to the 100 block of North State, where the 18-year-old kicked the 20-year-old, police said.
The alleged vandal was arrested, and charges were pending late Friday.
Green markings remained on the inside of the gleaming sculpture Saturday afternoon.
It’s not the first time the Bean has been tagged since it became a Chicago symbol in 2004. Two men were hit with felony charges in 2019 after a group of people defaced it with white spray paint.
Mitchell Armentrout Facing firing, COP quits amid accusation of taking bribe from diver who later found Anthony Rizzo’s wedding ring
A Chicago police sergeant resigned while facing dismissal for allegedly taking a bribe from a diver famous for recovering former Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo’s wedding ring from the bottom of Belmont Harbor, the Chicago Police Board announced Thursday.
Marine Unit Sgt. Eduardo Beltran accepted the bribe in April 2017 from Yohei Yamada, who wanted access to the Chicago Harbor Lock to recover a lost boat propeller for a client, according to a charging document filed with the board last April.
“Beltran accepted approximately $1,000, for personal use ... in exchange for using his official CPD position to gain access to the Chicago Harbor Lock to recover a lost boat propeller for Yamada’s client,” the document states. “Beltran utilized CPD equipment, resources, and/or personnel to effectuate the propeller recovery.”
Beltran allegedly covered up the incident by approving a false dive report written by a second police officer, Michael Michalik. The two allegedly let the diver use police sonar equipment.
In the charging document, Brown recommended Beltran and Michalik be fired. Michalik previously resigned from the department.
Yamada, the diver, gained attention in July 2020 when he recovered Rizzo’s wedding ring that slipped off his finger into Belmont Harbor.
David Struett and Tom Schuba