Hello, McFly!
Detroit Police arrested a local graffiti artist as he painted a mural — commissioned by their own city — because they thought he was a vandal, according to a report on Sunday.
Painter and musician Sheefy McFly was working on a viaduct in the Motor City’s northeast side when two police officers stopped him, the Detroit Free Press reported.
“It’s an oxymoron — doing something for the city and being arrested by the city,” McFly told the paper.
The 29-year-old artist — whose real name is Tashif Turner — didn’t have his city-issued permit in hand, but even as a city official showed up to vouch for him, the situation escalated, he said, adding that four or five more cop cars pulled up to the site.
When he went to check his backpack for the permit, he said officers tried to detain him, with one cop putting her hand on his neck.
“They treated me like a felon even though I was commissioned by the city to do this,” said McFly, adding that he felt “depressed” after being arrested for the first time.
“I felt threatened for my life.”
Detroit Police Department spokesperson Sgt. Nicole Kirkwood said the officers found McFly to be uncooperative with their investigation.
He was arrested for allegedly resisting and obstructing police, as well as on an outstanding traffic warrant, said Kirkwood.
McFly said he spent about 24 hours at the Detroit Detention Center and called the conditions there “horrible.” He has a court date for the parking ticket warrant July 3.
He said he’s still trying to decide if he’ll finish the mural, after the incident, which made him feel “racially profiled and bullied.”
The mural was commissioned as part of a local initiative called City Walls, that aims to combat illegal graffiti with sanctioned work.