Swastika, Nazi propaganda graffiti spray painted on Lexington County road signs

Graffiti spray painted on road signs is unpleasant, but not uncommon.

When Nazi symbolism is the form of vandalism, that’s more startling.

That was one man’s reaction after he saw the Nazi swastika and other logos when he was driving through Lexington County Christmas Day.

“I was really shocked,” Marshall Harris said of seeing the symbols spray painted on the front of one road sign and the back of another near the intersection of Pond Branch Road and Boiling Springs Road. That intersection is near Edmund, not far from Gilbert or Red Bank.

The anti-Semitic graffiti was also found on a sign advertising piano tuning.

“It’s a fairly busy road, and nobody was doing anything,” Harris said Tuesday of the vandalism.

In addition to multiple swastika’s, “SS” was painted numerous times. That vandalism was likely a reference to the protection squadron that enforced the Nazi’s racial policy and operated concentration camps.

Additionally, “AB” could be made out on one of the vandalized signs. That could be a reference to the Aryan Brotherhood, a white supremacist group.

Harris said he spotted the graffiti as he was driving to his home in Atlanta. He was returning from a Christmas visit at his parents’ house in South Carolina, his old home state.

“I’m a former South Carolina resident. I love the state, a lot,” Harris said. “I was outraged by what I saw.”

Harris said he didn’t contact any local law enforcement agencies. He said area residents should feel responsible to do that.

The Lexington County Sheriff’s Department said a report was taken in the 200 block of Pond Branch Road about a report of vandalism.

The sheriff’s department said there were no other reports of Nazi-related vandalism in Lexington County beyond the signs in the Pond Branch Road area.

There was no word if there were any suspects.

“Our work on the case continues,” Capt. Adam Myrick said.

The South Carolina Department of Transportation said the two vandalized traffic signs should be replaced Wednesday, wistv.com reported.

Multiple messages were left with SCDOT about the subject, but hadn’t been returned as of Monday evening. There was no word on what would be involved in the process of cleaning, or replacing, the signs.

S.C. State Senator Katrina Shealy weighed in on the issue.

The Lexington resident who represents District 23 said SCDOT will fix the two road signs on Twitter, in response to a WIS tweet on the vandalism.

“DOT promises it will be handled,” Shealy wrote, before hinting she could take the matter into her own hands to find a quick solution to the Nazi symbolism.

“I have the spray paint!” Shealy tweeted.

The Lexington County Sheriff’s Department encourages anyone who might have seen a suspicious vehicle or person in the general area of the vandalized signs during the Christmas holiday to share that info by calling Crimestoppers at 888-CRIME-SC.

This story was originally published December 26, 2017 at 10:34 PM with the headline "Swastika, Nazi propaganda graffiti spray painted on Lexington County road signs."