According to the Noblesville Police Department (NPD), a downtown building and a local trail were spray-painted with obscene language and swastika symbols over the holiday weekend.

The vandalism occurred at the Richwine building, located on the northeast corner of 9^th Street and Maple Avenue. City officials also indicate the Riverwalk Trail just south of Division Street was vandalized.

Jill Janusiewicz, manager at Noblesville Antique Mall, told the Reporter’s newsgathering partner WISH-TV, “They either had a really tall ladder or they know somebody that lives in the apartments above and they got access that way … I think it’s kids. I think it’s for attention. I think they’re like, ‘Hey let’s do this and see what kind of attention we can get.’”

However, many people told News 8 they’re confident Noblesville is not a racist town.

“It’s (Noblesville), kind of a small-knit community still. Everybody knows everybody. People typically are not afraid to walk on the streets at night or dine or shop or walk. It’s fairly a safe community,” added Janusiewicz.

City staff are working to remove the graffiti from public property. This remains an ongoing investigation and as a result, no other information will be available for release at this time. Anyone with information regarding this case is encouraged to contact the NPD at (317) 776-6340 or visit p3tips.com/713.

Editor’s note: Several photos of the graffiti were published on social media and provided to news media. The Reporter chooses not to publish any photos related to the incident due to the graphic and racist content of the graffiti.