A makeshift memorial meant to honor the life of a 15-year-old girl killed last month after she was hit by a school bus has been vandalized and marked with anti-Semitic graffiti.
Antonina Zatulovska was found on Jan. 17 after she'd been struck by the driver near Bedford Avenue and Avenue P, near the Midwood neighborhood. Officers found the teen after answering a call that a pedestrian had been hit by a vehicle.
Councilmember Inna Vernikov tweeted a photo Monday of candles smashed to pieces at the memorial located outside James Madison High School, where the 15-year-old attended. Next to the candles and several stuffed animals, a swastika was drawn on the sidewalk.
"Today, a constituent reported to me that the makeshift memorial site was vandalized with a swastika & smashed candles," Vernikov tweeted. "To have that tragedy compounded by hateful bigotry is nothing short of cruelty."
Get Tri-state area news and weather forecasts to your inbox. Sign up for NBC New York newsletters.
The councilmember said she reported the incident to the NYPD.
A 55-year-old man was arrested the same day on charges of failing to yield to a pedestrian and failing to use due care.
