Atlanta police issue new warning for street racers after Midtown rainbow crosswalk vandalism

ATLANTA - Atlanta police are issuing a new warning to street racers coming into the city to perform dangerous stunts.

In a statement issued Thursday, the Atlanta Police Department made it clear that they won't tolerate street racing in the city.

WELL-KNOWN ATLANTA CROSSWALK DEFACED BY STREET RACERS FOR A SECOND TIME

Most recently, street racers hit the rainbow crosswalk at 10th and Piedmont in Midtown multiple weekends in a row - leaving behind tire skids all over the intersection.

Now Atlanta police investigators are speaking publicly about the incident.

"We had a group of individuals who decided to come into our city and violate our traffic laws by defacing our Midtown rainbow crosswalk at Piedmont and 10th," Deputy Chief Carven Tyus said.

The first incident happened on Feb. 20. After crews cleaned up the damage, street racers returned the next week to do it again.

"It’s disappointing because someone came out and cleaned this last weekend and that’s what really makes me mad. They saw it upset people and people care about the crosswalks and they still came out and destroyed them for a second time," Midtown resident Raquel Croston told FOX 5.

By the time police responded to both incidents, the street racers are gone. But investigators say they have already identified several suspects and their cars who were involved in the street races.

"In identifying these suspects we determined that a lot of these individuals are not residents of the city, but simply people who drove into the city to conduct their foolishness," Tyus said.

Officials don't believe either incident was specifically targeting the LGBTQ community. Instead, they said they think it was just for the attention.

The APD is working with neighboring agencies and state and federal partners to continue to crack down on street racing.

Crime Stoppers is offering a $2,000 reward to anyone with information that leads to the arrest and indictment of the street racing suspects.

When were Atlanta's rainbow crosswalks painted?

The crosswalk was introduced as symbol of unity during Atlanta Pride Week in 2015. 

Then-Mayor Kasim Reed decided to make the crosswalks a permanent fixture to the area in 2017.

Artist Robert Sepulveda Jr. spent more than a year planning the crosswalks. 

How is Georgia combating street racing?

Lawmakers passed a bill in 2021 pushed by Gov. Brian Kemp to crack down on street racing. 

The governor is gearing up for a reelection run in 2022 and has touted efforts to fight crime in Atlanta, saying it has a "serious crime problem."

In May 2021, Kemp granted $5 million to the Georgia Department of Public Safety to fight street racing.

WATCH: FOX 5 NEWS LIVE COVERAGE