A 33-year-old member of a notorious Australian graffiti crew was arrested last month in the vandalism of BART trains at multiple yards around the Bay Area, according to court filings.
Police arrested Matthew Raoul White at San Francisco International Airport as he was awaiting a connecting flight to Sydney, prosecutors said. Officers found spray paint on White's clothes and shoes at the time of his arrest.
White, who was identified by Australian authorities as a member of Get Hectik, was responsible for graffiti found on BART trains at the agency's Millbrae yard on Dec. 5, prosecutors said. Similar graffiti was found on trains at BART yards in Daly City, Richmond and Concord, and an Australian official positively identified all the graffiti as the work of a Get Hectik tagger, they said.
"He’s a prolific tagger," said Ed Alvarez, BART's deputy police chief. "He is well known in Australia; when he was leaving the country, contacts were made out here in the United States."
White is being charged with two felony counts of vandalism for the Millbrae tagging, according to the San Mateo DA's Office. Authorities are still investigating whether or not he is linked to the other BART yard incidents.
White is being held at San Mateo County jail on $400,000 bail. His next scheduled court date is Jan. 14.
