Originally published by: Lake & Mchenry County Scanner

Two men have been arrested after they allegedly defaced numerous businesses in Round Lake Beach by spray-painting hate speech and swastikas early Tuesday morning.

David M. Dolan, 18, of unincorporated Lake Villa, and Anthony P. Shields, 19, of unincorporated Lake Villa, have each been charged with hate crime, a Class 3 felony, and four counts of hate crime, a Class 4 felony.

Shields and Dolan were also charged with criminal defacement of property. Dolan was additionally charged with criminal trespass to property.

The Round Lake Beach Police Department was called around 3:30 a.m. Tuesday to the Walmart Superstore, 2680 North Route 83 in Round Lake Beach.

Round Lake Beach Police Chief Wayne Wilde Jr. said the employees found the doors to the lawn and garden section had been defaced by spray paint.

Investigators determined several businesses in the 2000 block of Route 83 were spray painted with hate speech, including racial slurs and swastikas.

One of those businesses included Consumers Credit Union across from Walmart.

References to Hitler had been spray painted on an outside fence of the bank along with profanity directed at the Round Lake Beach Police Department.

A swastika and a reference to killing were also left on the doors of the bank.

Officers spotted Dolan and Shields riding bicycles near Rollins Road and Hainesville Road, Wilde said.

Officers, who had previous encounters with Dolan, stopped the two men and found them in possession of spray paint.

The spray paint matched the color of the graffiti discovered on several businesses, Wilde said.

Officers obtained verbal admission from the men that they were responsible for spray painting hate speech across the businesses in the area.

“Hate speech like what was displayed Tuesday has no place in Round Lake Beach,” Wilde said. “These offenders will be charged to the fullest extent possible for what they did.”

The Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office reviewed the case and approved the charges.

The two are likely to appear for an initial court hearing Tuesday afternoon.