Lee sheriff's office probes antisemitic graffiti near North Fort Myers

A suspicious small blaze followed by the discovery of graffiti near a pickleball court at a North Fort Myers community led authorities to launch an antisemitism investigation.

Lee County sheriff’s deputies responded to the Pine Lakes Community just before 9:30 a.m. Sunday, where they met with an employee for ELS, the company that owns and operates the pickleball court and surrounding buildings.

Around 5 a.m., the North Fort Myers Fire Department arrived on scene. At that time, the employee reported the pickle ball court was last seen undamaged at approximately 8 p.m. Saturday.

According to the sheriff’s office, the employee also told authorities multiple items were thrown around the parking lot, including first aid equipment, pens, a water cooler and miscellaneous items which were previously in small cupboards attached to the fence.

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Authorities said they found no damage in the misplaced items. The employee said he then observed graffiti on the nearby shed.

The sheriff’s office described the graffiti as antisemitic verbiage. They said they are following leads, reviewing surveillance, speaking with witnesses, and doing area checks to close this case.

The employee told authorities he is unsure of the approximate value of the damage, which remained under assessment at publication time.

According to the sheriff’s office, the employee believes it will be over $1,000 to replace the mesh privacy screen, and approximately $60 to repaint the fence.

The employee indicated to authorities that if the pickleball court has to be refinished due to damages from the mesh privacy screen being burnt, the price will rise.

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When the sheriff’s office contacted the North Fort Myers Fire District, firefighters reported the fire was small in nature and required less than 20 gallons of water.

According to the report, the fire district also told the sheriff’s office they would not complete an arson investigation.

The sheriff’s office said they continue to follow all leads.

Tomas Rodriguez is a Breaking/Live News Reporter for the Naples Daily News and The News-Press. You can reach Tomas at TRodriguez@gannett.com or 772-333-5501. Connect with him on Threads @tomasfrobeltran, Instagram @tomasfrobeltran, Facebook @tomasrodrigueznews and Bluesky @tomasfrodriguez.

This article originally appeared on Fort Myers News-Press: Lee sheriff probes antisemitic graffiti in North Fort Myers

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