Last weekend, residents of Lunn’s Way in the Ponds of Plymouth development woke up to alarming graffiti that included swastikas spray painted on fences, signs, and mailboxes, Plymouth police said.
The graffiti, which appeared in the early morning of Dec. 9, also included racial epithets and drawings of male body parts, police said.
“The department takes this type of vandalism very seriously,” said police spokesman Jason Higgins. “Our officers are working diligently working to solve this matter.”
Police are reviewing footage from several doorbell cameras in the area, Higgins said.
While the motive for the ugly graffiti spree is not known, just two months ago a group described as neo-Nazi by the Anti-Defamation League appeared to be recruiting volunteers in Plymouth and other South Shore communities.
The organization, called the National Socialist Club, was described in a flyer it apparently distributed as “a pro-white street-oriented fraternity dedicated to raising authentic resistance to the enemies of our people in the New England area.”
It said they were looking for “men of European descent in the New England area that wish to see a better future for your people.”
At the time, the Plymouth Police Department said on its Facebook page that “at first glance, this flyer seems to be within the confines of the First Amendment.”
“Of course, we do not like this type of literature, or any like it that pits any race, creed or religion against each other,” the department added.
Police are asking anyone with information about the vandalism at Ponds of Plymouth to call Officer Thomas Souza or Detective Michael Webber at 508-746-1212.
Andrea Estes can be reached at andrea@plymouthindependent.org.