Rodney Maulding Jr., no fixed address, Nashua

By DEAN SHALHOUP

Senior Staff Writer

NASHUA – Back in March, shortly after they arrested 33-year-old Rodney Maulding Jr. on one count of felony-level criminal mischief for allegedly painting graffiti on a downtown business, police began receiving additional reports of similar activity, prompting them to launch an investigation.

That investigation would develop information that again pointed to Maulding, and on Tuesday, patrol officers located him and took him into custody on a Class B felony charge of criminal mischief – consolidated, meaning that the charge covers multiple alleged offenses consolidated for prosecution purposes.

Maulding, who lists no fixed address, was booked on the charge and later released on $250 cash bail pending arraignment, which police said will occur in Hillsborough County Superior Court South at a later date.

Over the course of the roughly five-month investigation, members of the department’s Problem Oriented Policing (POP) Unit and the Criminal Investigation Division took 11 reports from local businesses and properties owned by the city of Nashua, Lt. Robert Page said in a statement.

Among the businesses filing reports was The Telegraph, where employees discovered graffiti on the back side of the building on two occasions in early March.

According to then-Telegraph publisher Heather Henline, it cost the company roughly $2,000 – $1,000 for each episode – to have the graffiti removed.

The suspect, later identified as Maulding, used mainly black spray paint to “tag” a roughly 10 foot by 6 foot section of the back wall of the Telegraph building, which is along a short alley that connects a parking lot and the Library Walk.

The spot happened to be just feet away from two of numerous surveillance cameras around The Telegraph building. Police said the images the cameras captured helped them identify Maulding as a suspect.

Other locations where graffiti was discovered include 80 Main St., which is at the corner of Main and Park streets, the Mint Cafe restaurant near the corner of Canal and Lowell streets, and the former Portland Pie location just west of the Mint Cafe.

Police Lt. Dan Mederos said at the time that police had also received reports from residents or business owners on Scripture and Howard streets, which are within a neighborhood of large buildings and narrow streets off of Temple Street.

Dean Shalhoup may be reached at 594-1256 or dshalhoup@nashuatelegraph.com.