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Set us as preferred Four men — including a Los Angeles Department of Water and Power employee — were responsible for more than $170,000 in damage to downtown buildings during a yearlong graffiti spree, prosecutors alleged Thursday.
Javier Rezendez Rocha, who joined LADWP as an aide to electricians, was charged with 12 counts of felony vandalism in connection with the string of incidents that lasted from August 2025 to August 2026, according to a criminal complaint.
Rocha and three other men are accused of using “specialized equipment” to spray-paint tags and other markings down the sides of buildings, recording their actions with drones, according to a statement issued by the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.
“These defendants turned buildings across Los Angeles into their personal billboards, leaving property owners with over $170,000 in repair costs,” Dist. Atty.
Nathan Hochman said in a statement. “Their alleged motive: not artistic expression but money and social media eyeballs.
They are accused of going to extraordinary lengths to c ommit these crimes, using climbing equipment and drones to record their vandalism then allegedly profiting from it.” Some of the addresses listed in the criminal complaint match those of historic downtown corridor buildings such as the Cameo Theatre and the Roxie Theatre.
Another incident took place inside Pershing Square and one happened outside downtown near the intersection of Wilshire Boulevard and La Brea Avenue.
Authorities said city-owned “rapelling equipment was allegedly used” during the incidents and displayed online, according to a spokeswoman for the district attorney’s office. Michael Ray Gonzales, 40, of Pico Rivera was charged with seven counts of felony vandalism.
Francisco Rodriguez Aguilar, 37, of West Covina and Richard Evan Ward II, 45, of Oceanside were charged with two counts each. It was not immediately clear whether the men were represented by attorneys.
An LADWP spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
James Queally writes about crime and policing in Southern California, where he currently covers Los Angeles County’s criminal courts, the district attorney’s office and juvenile justice issues for the Los Angeles Times.
On screen, Errol Flynn played a series of daredevils, fortune hunters, and suave romantics. Off screen, he lived a life of outsize debauchery and recklessness, including a persistent interest in underage girls.
In 1943, at the height of his fame, he faced trial in Los Angeles on charges of statutory rape. In our first episode, the L.A.
Times columnist George Skelton sizes up the governors he’s known, what made them successful and whether the next one can measure up. How do you get more people to care about climate change — and tell riveting stories along the way?
Boiling Point explored that question at a live event during this year’s New York City Climate Week at Columbia University’s Climate School.
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