(JTA) – Antisemitic graffiti has appeared for the fifth time this month at one of the busiest intersections in the Chinatown section of Washington, D.C. On Monday, swastikas were discovered painted on a street there, the DCist news website reported. A swastika also was drawn on the door of a corner Starbucks, according to the report. The graffiti was found near where vandals earlier in August had painted the word “Jew” repeatedly on the images of rats on an outdoor Chinese Zodiac public art display. Maintenance crews employed by DowntownDC, a private nonprofit that encourages business in the city center, have repeatedly cleaned the graffiti, including the swastikas from Monday.
D.C. Police are offering a $1,000 reward through Crime Solvers for information that leads to an arrest or conviction in the graffiti. The incidents are being investigated as suspected hate crimes.