Teens William Cross and Raymond Wicker charged after scrawling hate-filled messages across neighborhood

Two Roswell teenagers are face serious charges after police say the teens set fires and scrawled hate-filled messages in a local neighborhood.

One of the two teens remained in the Roswell City Jail. Police said the teens started off their summer vacation with a bang.

"I think it's ridiculous that people vandalize stuff," witness Grace Bowes said.

A bued bike, a beer can and a busted sign remained in front of the Wildwood Springs Subdivision when Channel 2's Mike Petchenik arrived Tuesday. Reminders of what police say happened there the night before.

"There's no point in it. There's plenty of fun stuff to do that's not illegal," Bowes said.

Bowes, who works as a life guard, came to work Tuesday moing to find more destruction.

"There was a chair in the pool and a bucket of chalk in the pool and one of the umbrellas was up in the lifeguard stand," Bowes said.

Police told Petchenik they responded to the subdivision Monday night to calls about a fire. When they got there, officers said they spotted 17-year-old William Cross and 17-year-old Raymond Wicker running away.

"They were able to capture the suspects and later located some hate graffiti on the ground written in chalk," Lisa Holland with the Roswell Police Department said.

Police believe the boys scrawled Nazi swastikas on the sidewalk.

"I guess I thought at 17 they wouldn't even know what a swastika is. That upsets me. I'm Jewish," neighbor Julie Conrad said.

Conrad told Petchenik the vandalism is bad enough, but the meaning behind it is what conces her.

"They would probably need to get some education in general and counseling as far as what the meaning was behind the swastika part anyway," Conrad said.

Both teens are facing numerous charges including minor in possession, loitering and prowling and obstruction, which are all misdemeanors.

Petchenik tried reaching the teen's parents for comment, but nobody was home when he showed up.