METAIRIE, La. — “Don’t get the vaccine” — those were the words spray painted on the sidewalk in front of A1 Pharmacy in Metairie Tuesday.
The vandal also wrote the words “fear no evil.” Similar markings were made on the CVS up the street.
The Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office is investigating the early morning crimes and believe the two acts of vandalism are related.
“That is distressing,” Dr. Julio Figueroa, LSU Health’s infection diseases chief said.
Dr. Figueroa says the vandalism is concerning because vaccines are the best way out of the pandemic. We asked him what his message might be for the person responsible.
"I would ask them where they are getting their information from and why the reluctance?” he said. “We certainly use vaccines for lots of different things. It made a tremendous impact in human history."
Along with the anti-vaccine message, the tagger wrote “fear no evil,” and “John 3:16.”
Fr. Bill Terry with St. Anne’s Episcopal Church says the tagger has a serious misunderstanding of scripture.
"It's abuse of the faith, in my opinion and a gross misunderstand of what is trying to be communicated in the Christian tradition as well as some of the other major traditions, Islam and Judaism,” Fr. Terry said.
Fr. Terry said the tagger is weaponizing Christianity.
"That makes me angry,” he said. “I think it makes a lot of pastors and imams and rabbis angry, to weaponize one's faith"
The pharmacies worked quickly to remove the tags. No one from either store wanted to go on camera.
JPSO says they are working on reviewing the surveillance video. As of Tuesday night, no arrests have been made.