Hired guard sees man remove campaign sign

Spokane Valley City Council candidate Dean Grafos got tired of having his campaign signs at 16th Avenue and Dishman-Mica Road disappear, so he hired a security guard to hide in the bushes last week.

The guard came up empty Monday night, but spotted a man early Wednesday morning who he said took one of Grafos’ signs and threw it away on the other side of Dishman-Mica Road. Spokane Valley Police said the guard called them and was still following the suspect when they arrived around 3 a.m.

Sgt. Dave Reagan said 55-year-old Larry Maurice Moss II, who lives in the 1500 block of South Mica Park Drive, admitted taking the sign after being confronted with the security guard’s evidence.

Reagan said Moss told officers he had no grudge against any candidate but was irritated about seeing political signs everywhere he went. Officers didn’t arrest Moss but have asked the county prosecutor’s office to summon him into court on a misdemeanor charge of removing or defacing political advertising.

Grafos said he had permission to place his signs on the vacant lot where Moss allegedly took a sign valued at $6. Several larger, more expensive signs also had been taken, Grafos said.