Prince William County high school vandalized with spray paint, dead animal parts

HAYMARKET, Va. - Prince William County police are trying to figure out who spread body parts from a dead animal and spray-painted lewd drawings, messages and profanity on a high school football field.

The troubling scene was found at Battlefield High School in Haymarket on Tuesday morning as students returned to class following Memorial Day weekend.

The spray paint was found all over the football field, the bleachers and the track. Even more disturbing were the animal parts, believed to be roadkill or possibly a raccoon, found dismembered and thrown all around the athletic field.

The vandalism caused several thousands of dollars in damage and received a lot of attention on social media.

Now, the school, the school's booster club as well as parents have donated money to contribute to the $3,000 reward for information that will lead to finding the person or people responsible.

Investigators and the school district both said it is not known at this time if this was part of a senior prank. However, the incident did happen just days away from graduation and some of the spray paint included writing that said, "Class of 2018" and "2018."

"I think anytime you think that somebody has purposefully hurt an animal for some type of ridiculous prank, it upsets you," said Prince William County Public Schools spokesperson Diana Gulotta. "Now it does sound like it was roadkill, but even so, it is gross and inappropriate and it is really unfortunate that whoever did this thought they should bring animal body parts to the school."

Gulotta added, "It's not funny. You may think it's a joke, but it's not funny to damage property and to impact the lives of students, and so we take it very seriously, the police are taking it very seriously and it can impact your record for the rest of your lives. So why take that chance?"

In a letter sent home to parents, the principal of Battlefield High School said if students are responsible for the vandalism, they will face disciplinary action, including not walking at the graduation ceremony if they are seniors.

Meanwhile, Prince William County police said the people responsible could also face felony charges including vandalism.