Just mere hours after an artist in Austin, Texas unveiled a mural honoring the late Kobe Bryant, the artwork was defaced with the word “rapist.”
“Went pay my respects to Kobe but the mural has already been defaced (?),” he tweeted.
KVUE reached out to the artist that stated he already went back and fixed it.
“I believe everyone has their own beliefs and opinions on various matters,” artist Laced and Found told KVUE. “Nonetheless there are ways to go about speaking and voicing personal thoughts. This was disrespectful to the Kobe family, the city of Austin, the fans and the artists who put some serious hard work and emotions into the piece. We will continue to fix this piece and prolong it as long as possible for the community to have it as their own.”
It was back in the early 2000’s when Bryant was accused of sexually assaulting a 19-year-old woman working as a front desk clerk in Colorado.
The case was ultimately dropped by prosecutors in Sept. 2004 after the accuser decided she would not testify. A medical examination of the victim showed she had sex with someone else in the 15 hours after the alleged rape and before the exam — a claim later denied by prosecutors.
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A civil suit was later settled out of court in March 2005.
