Photo: Contributed.

A racist message was scratched into a vehicle in Queensborough - one of two recent incidents being invested by police.

British Columbia’s hate crimes unit is helping the New Westminster Police Department investigate recent racist graffiti incidents in Queensborough and Sapperton.

The NWPD is seeking the public’s assistance in identifying suspects responsible for racist graffiti connected to two separate incidents.

The first incident is believed to have occurred overnight between June 5 and 6. A victim reported finding racist messages scratched into his vehicle, which was parked in the area of South Dyke Road in the Queensborough.

The second incident occurred around midnight on Friday, June 17, when a resident called police to say he was witnessing two suspects spray-painting racist graffiti on buildings in the 400 block of East Columbia Street in Sapperton.

According to a NWPD press release, local police and the Lower Mainland Integrated Police Dog Service attended the Sapperton scene but couldn’t locate anyone matching the suspects’ descriptions. Police discovered that five vehicles had been spray-painted with graffiti. Officers searched the area for CCTV footage and evidence, but they’d still like to hear from anyone who may have information about the case.

“When I saw this graffiti I was disgusted with what I was reading,” said NWPD spokesperson Sgt. Justine Thom. “Racist incidents are taken seriously by the New Westminster Police Department. This investigation is ongoing, and we’re asking anyone with information who has not yet spoken to officers to call us.”

The New Westminster Police Department, which has an officer seconded to the Provincial Hate Crime Unit, has shared information about these incidents with this unit.

The suspects in the June 17 incident in Sapperton are described as Caucasian males, approximately 20 to 30 years old, standing each approximately 5’7″ tall. One of the suspects was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt and the other was wearing a red hooded sweatshirt.

Anyone with information about the incidents can call the New Westminster Police Department at 604-525-5411.