CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. (WRIC) — Three teens are facing charges after allegedly throwing a dummy onto a yard with a swastika, and an Isis symbol painted on it in The Grove subdivision in Chesterfield County. It happened off of Gravity Hill Road.
“I actually did what some people shouldn’t have done, I chased them,” said resident Larry Self.
Self says one of his kids was having a birthday party Tuesday night when several teens pulled up in an SUV and started cursing at their kids outside. Self says the teens threw a dummy onto his driveway with a swastika painted on the front and an Isis symbol painted on the back. Self says that’s when he got in his car and went after them.
“My heart was racing because of the things that these kids were saying which I can’t repeat and I just wanted to get a license plate,” he said.
But it’s not the first time residents in that area saw what was described as a dark blue SUV. For several weeks, neighbors of the subdivision had been writing about teens that had been terrorizing the neighborhood on the community Facebook page including Scott Malkie, who woke up one morning to find a swastika on the window of his car.
“I originally had written it off as teenagers just being dumb,” said Malkie.
He posted the picture to the community Facebook page.
“My post on the Facebook page really took off and got dozens of responses,” said Malkie.
Another resident, who didn’t want to be identified, told 8News that teens in a dark blue SUV cursed at their kids and almost ran her three-year-old daughter over. She says her five-year-old had to dive to get her out of the way.
“When it becomes a safety, when it becomes a dangerous issue that’s when, yeah, we all need to step up,” said Malkie.
Self, along with other neighbors, were able to piece together a license plate, names, and vehicle description for police, all from Facebook posts. Now, police say three teens are facing charges in connection to what happened to Self’s family Monday night.
“We look out for each other and there are certain behaviors that we’re not going to tolerate,” said Malkie.
“For me it says don’t come into our neighborhood because we have people that are watching,” said Self.
Police say the 17-year-old driver has been charged with reckless driving and curse and abuse. One 16-year-old was charged with curse and abuse and unlawful dumping of trash. Another 16-year-old was also charged with curse and abuse. Police say their investigation indicates the juveniles may have been involved in earlier, unreported incidents of vandalism in the neighborhood.
