ORLANDO, Fla. — "Gay is not ok," "death to gays" and the verse from Leviticus condemning homosexual acts were among a series of hate messages graffitied onto the side of two Orlando LGBTQ+ centers back in late August.
"It's not the first time it has happened and even though is frustrating, we are not going to stop being a beacon of light for our community," The Center Orlando wrote at the time on a social media post regarding the vandalism it and the neighboring Zebra Youth center experienced overnight.
On Sept. 13, Orlando police announced that they arrested 34-year-old Matthew Michael Robinson and charged him with three counts of criminal mischief in connection to the hate messages and symbols written on the buildings, which reportedly also included a swastika and the crosshairs of a gun scope.
According to local reporting from WKMG in Orlando, surveillance video shows Robinson did not act alone, and another arrest could be possible.
In a social media post, Orlando police urged residents to come forward with any information on the crime, which they were reportedly first notified about a little after 3 a.m. on Tuesday, Aug. 26.
As LGBTQ Nation reported, The Center has been vandalized before with anti-LGBTQ slogans. It happened in 2009 and again in 2020 when a mural painted to honor the victims of the deadly mass shooting in the Pulse nightclub was defaced with white supremacist stickers and spray paint.
Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer issued a statement condemning the latest act of vandalism and saying that hate had no place in the city.
"Here in Orlando we will continue to embrace one another and work to create an inclusive, welcoming city for all,” Dyer said in the statement.
