Suspected Graffiti Duo Busted Over Forest Hills Train Tagging: NYPD

FOREST HILLS, QUEENS — A duo suspected of tagging subway trains in Forest Hills with graffiti early Wednesday morning were arrested and charged by police.

Hugo Guerreiro, 39, a tourist visiting from Portugal, and Alexis Gines, 32, a Brooklyn resident, were busted about 2 a.m. Wednesday near the 75th Avenue subway station in Forest Hills, the NYPD said.

Police responding to a 911 call of graffiti on trains at the station stopped the duo near the subway and, after an investigation by the NYPD’s Citywide Vandals Task Force, hit them both with a slew of charges, police said.

Guerreiro and Gines are now both facing charges for criminal mischief, criminal mischief intent to damage property, criminal trespassing, making graffiti and possession of graffiti instruments, according to the NYPD. Gines has prior graffiti arrests from 2018.

During the NYPD investigation, officers found two duffel bags filled with 15 cans of spray paint matching the paint used to make the graffiti, police said.

The duo stand accused of leaving the train station with the duffel bags and hiding them under vehicles, according to camera footage reviewed by the NYPD and findings from the police investigation.

The trains that were tagged Wednesday were all out-of-use and being stored in the Forest Hills station's tunnel, police said.