Graffiti Vandal Gets 6 Months In Plea Deal
BY LINDA J. WILSON

(L. to r.) City Councilmember Peter Vallone Jr., members of the 114th Precinct Civilian Observation Patrol (114th Civ-OP), 114th Civ-OP Patrol President James Pollock and Antonio Meloni, director of New York Anti-Crime Agency in Astoria, gather at the Queens County Courthouse before Oliver Siandre, better known by his graffiti tag of "KIKO", was sentenced on Thursday, October 19.

A 28-year-old Manhattan resident charged with being one of New York City's more notorious graffiti taggers last Thursday pleaded guilty to felony criminal mischief, among other charges, and admitted to extensively vandalizing public and private property in Astoria and Long Island City. Queens District Attorney Richard Brown said that Oliver Siandre admitted that between September and February 2005, he spray painted his tag of "KIKO" and his crew's name, "Crazy 8" or "C8", on personal and public properties including Saint Demetrios Greek American School at 30-03 30th Dr. in Astoria, a tree and the ground inside Athens Square Park, located at 30th Avenue and 30th Street in Astoria, the garage door of the Powhatan Regular Democratic Club, located at 41-05 Newtown Rd. in Long Island City, pillars, a Metropolitan Transit Authority overpass, various individual homes and overpasses, trucks, walls, gates, garage doors and roof shingles. The vandalism resulted in thousands of dollars worth of damage to the various properties.

Siandre pled guilty October 19 to three counts of criminal mischief in the second degree, a Class D felony, two counts of criminal mischief in the third degree and criminal mischief in the fourth degree before Queens Supreme Court Justice Barry Kron. He is expected to be sentenced on December 7 to six months in jail and five years probation and also be required to make restitution in the amount of $25,000 to the city and the business and home owners of the properties he damaged. In addition, it will be requested that Siandre be ordered to perform a substantial period of community service as a condition of his probation. Judge Kron stipulated that if Siandre is caught destroying property again before his next court date, he will throw out the plea bargain and impose the maximum sentence of seven to 25 years in prison.

"Graffiti is a symptom of crime and negatively affects the quality of life of all citizens through decreased property values, increased taxes and a financial burden on affected businesses and homes," Brown declared. "City officials and antigraffiti activists have done a remarkable job over the years in cleaning up New York City's image as a graffiti-scarred city. We cannot allow one individual to mar the beauty of our city and threaten to return us to the days when our transit system and our highways and buildings were covered with graffiti."

"Today's sentence will be a signal to all graffiti vandals that their destruction of property will be treated like the serious crime that it is," Assemblymember Michael Gianaris (D-Astoria) said. "This community made it clear that justice will be served on those who blatantly disregard our laws and pollute our neighborhood with their offensive acts. I commend the District Attorney and the judge in this case for their diligence and attention."

City Councilmember Peter Vallone Jr. (DAstoria), who noticed the "KIKO" tag scrawled on various properties throughout his district last year and commended the Police Department for tracking down the vandal, also applauded the sentence. "This punk can scribble all the graffiti he wants-on the inside of his cell," Vallone said. "As I've said from Day 1, if you vandalize our neighborhood, we will find you, and you will go to jail."

Vallone has made strenuous efforts to pass laws that would limit the sale of instruments and substances used to make graffiti. Various groups that claim graffiti represents an exercise of free speech have scrawled profanity involving his name in various places, and when news of Siandre's conviction was announced, published his address on a Web site used by makers of graffiti to display photographs of their works and exchange news. Police are keeping his home under observation.