McIver Residence Hall vandalized with offensive graffiti

Students living on McIver Residence Hall’s first floor awoke on March 31 to offensive graffiti around their floor and a red spray painted knife that was left in the kitchen.

The resident adviser’s door, the community kitchen and several mirrors were also spray painted.

The incident followed a string of reported vandalism that campus police continue to investigate.

According to campus police, the business school parking lot, New East Building and several other mid-campus locations have also been vandalized in recent weeks.

Andrea Pino, the RA whose door was vandalized, has gained notoriety in recent months for filing a complaint against the University regarding its handling of sexual assault.

McIver resident Abby Winn said she thinks Pino was targeted because of her involvement in the lawsuit.

“We were the only hall in the community that was vandalized,” Winn said.

“The Title IX bulletin board was spray painted. My door is right next to Andrea’s, and they could have attacked mine, but they didn’t.”

Winn, whose letter to the editor regarding the vandalism was published in The Daily Tar Heel on Friday, said she has been disappointed by the way the University has handled the incident. It issued an Alert Carolina notification Friday.

“It took them, what — five or six days to send out an Alert Carolina?” she said. “The University and (the Department of Public Safety) continue to try to sweep these things under the rug.”

Winn said she believes the Kenan Community, which contains McIver, has taken little action in response to the vandalism. She said an email was sent out following her Friday letter, but there has been no other response.

“It’s not only this incident that’s the problem,” Winn said. “I think its part of a wider set of issues. It brings the way crime is reported on campus to the forefront.”

Photos of the potential vandal were released as part of the Alert Carolina message.

Department of Public Safety spokesman Randy Young said Thursday that no suspects have been named.

Young said the investigation is ongoing, and he is unsure if the vandalism at McIver is related to the other incidents on campus.

“There’s some consistency to the use of spray paint and graffiti, but there is no indication that it is the same individual,” Young said.

Winn said she thinks the vandal entered McIver by following a resident in, commonly referred to as tailgating. She said she feels safe living in McIver, but advised her fellow residents to remain cautious.

“It’s an eerie reminder to students on campus that tailgating can cause serious problems,” Winn said.

“It’s a very real reminder that if you let someone in behind you, these things can happen.”

Contact the desk editor at university@dailytarheel.com.