A property damage incident that began as a late-night emergency at Mason’s Arlington Campus has been resolved after the individual came forward and accepted accountability, according to university police. (George Mason University Police Department)

Suspect turns themselves in after video of vandalism goes viral

BY RITHVIK HARI, ASSISTANT NEWS EDITOR

Just after midnight on March 23, the Arlington County Fire Department responded to reports of a broken water pipe and active flooding in a parking garage at the Arlington Probation and Parole Office on the Mason Square campus. Upon arrival, the Arlington County Fire Department discovered significant water damage caused by a ruptured overhead pipe. 

During their investigation, Mason police discovered video evidence of the incident from security cameras in the parking garage. The footage showed the “deliberate act of an individual attempting to do a ‘pull-up’ on the pipe, rupturing it,” GMUPD Assistant Chief Emily Ross wrote in an email statement. 

The group of people in the video fled immediately after the pipe burst. 

On April 8, GMUPD posted the surveillance video clip to its official Instagram account, asking the community for assistance in identifying those involved. The post quickly went viral on social media, reaching over 1,000 likes and 3,000 shares on Instagram alone.

The video was also reposted on various other social media accounts and platforms with some posts reaching over 1.5 million views on X and over 33.5 million views on Instagram. 

Within hours of the post, the individual seen in the video turned themselves into campus police and took full responsibility for the damage. The department confirmed the case was closed that afternoon. 

GMUPD did not release the identity of the individual, and did not confirm that they had been charged. 

“Moral of the story is ‘if you mess up, you fess up!’ and he led with that in doing the right thing,” Chief Ross wrote.