Man arrested for alleged vandalism spree that damaged Holocaust Memorial, Paul Revere’s tombstone

A man was arrested after allegedly vandalizing multiple locations in Boston, including the Holocaust Memorial and Paul Revere’s tombstone, police said. 

Lawrence Hawkins, 46, of Boston was arrested and charged with destruction of a place of worship, defacing a burial site, and multiple counts of destruction of property, according to a statement from Boston Police. 

The first incident was reported at 11:31 p.m. on Saturday, when Boston Police officers were called to 125 Charles St. South for a report of breaking and entering. A florist is located at that address. Officers saw that the front door of a business there was smashed and a brick was found inside. 

Police reviewed surveillance footage and broadcast a description of a suspect to other officers. Just after midnight, an officer beginning his shift found that the front windshield of his cruiser had been smashed. A suspect was again identified through surveillance footage. 

Officers were then called to the area of 15 Sudbury St. and found a broken window. A similar suspect was identified, police said. 

Through more surveillance footage, police watched the suspect move to the New England Holocaust Memorial at 98 Union St. and throw something at it. Officers found a brick on the ground and the memorial vandalized. 

Just after 3 a.m. Sunday, police were called to 15 Court Sq. for a report of vandalism. They found a broken glass window at the back of a business there. They also saw a broken window at a nearby business located at 201 Washington St. Surveillance footage showed a similar suspect to the prior incidents. 

Police tracked the suspect to a shelter at 112 Southampton St. At about 4:30 a.m., officers went to the shelter and found the suspect, identified as Hawkins. He was arrested there. 

At about 10:45 a.m., police responded to the Granary Burying Ground near Tremont and Bromfield streets for a vandalism report. Multiple tombstones there had been damaged, including Paul Revere’s. Police were told that that 14 tombstones were vandalized “by being pulled from the ground or broken into pieces,” BPD said. 

As officers investigated, they found that another 6 tombstones had been damaged in the adjacent King’s Chapel Burying Ground. One was “forcibly pulled from the ground,” BPD said. 

Police once again reviewed surveillance footage, which showed a suspect matching the description of Hawkins. The National Park Service was notified.