Mt. Juliet police have moved quickly to deal with political sign destruction the last few days. An investigation is continuing as other suspects are pursued in Wilson County.
As reported earlier, at least 100 signs have been vandalized or destroyed in Lebanon and Mt Juliet over the past few days.
Now, Mt. Juliet Police have arrested the individual responsible for vandalizing multiple political signs early Monday morning at the corner of Lebanon Road and North Mt. Juliet Road.
At approximately 9:00 a.m. Tuesday an officer responded to police headquarters to take a report from a victim regarding political sign vandalism that occurred overnight. During the investigation, officers reviewed surveillance video from the area, which captured the suspect damaging multiple signs at around 3:00 a.m. before entering a nearby vehicle and leaving the area.
Investigators quickly developed leads when a license plate reader captured the vehicle’s license plate as it traveled through the area. Using that information, officers identified the suspect and responded, along with a detective, to his residence.
During the encounter, the suspect admitted to vandalizing the signs.
As a result of the investigation, 18-year-old Lucas Reiter of Mt. Juliet was arrested and booked into the Wilson County Jail on a charge of Felony Vandalism (TCA 39-14-408). He is an anti-ICE trans kid who attended Greenhill High School and boasted online about posting trans graffiti at the school last year.
The Department issued a statement reminding the community that political signs are protected property, and intentionally damaging or destroying them is a criminal offense. We remain committed to protecting the rights of all individuals to lawfully express their views and participate in the democratic process.
Steve Gill is editor and publisher of TriStar Daily.
