Oldest Christopher Columbus Monument In U.S. Destroyed With Sledgehammer

BALTIMORE, MD - A centuries-old monument in honor of Christopher Columbus crumbled in Baltimore with several swings of a sledgehammer.

Authorities are asking for tips after the suspects who destroyed the obelisk posted a YouTube video showing the crime in progress.

Police said that in addition to the sledgehammer-wielding individual, two others were at the scene - one filming, another holding a sign.

According to a YouTube video posted by "Popular Resistance," they filmed the act in the "dark of night on Aug. 21" to end the "Columbian wave of destruction." Said the narrator: "Part of our evolution as humans requires tearing down monuments to destructive forces and tearing down systems that maintain them."

The obelisk near Herring Run Park was one of three Columbus monuments in Baltimore. Created in 1792, it was the oldest Columbus monument in the nation.

"We want to inform people that it is a crime to destroy the property," Baltimore Police Chief of Media Relations T.J. Smith said at a press conference Monday.

"It's dangerous. It's also unnecessary, and it's something that has a process, and the process was observed last week here in Baltimore," Smith said.

Mayor Catherine Pugh ordered four statues to be taken down across the city last week, after the Baltimore City Council ordered their removal through a vote.

The action came in the wake of a deadly riot involving white supremacists Aug. 12 in Charlottesville, Virginia, in response to the city's decision to remove a statue of Confederate General Robert E. Lee, an issue cities and states across former slave-holding areas grapple with more than 150 years after the end of the Civil War.

Police in Baltimore urged people to respect the processes in place.

"Were dealing with lot of problems in society right now," Smith said. "All of the hate that we're seeing and ultimately intentional damage and destruction to property is not the appropriate way to go about this."

Said Smith: "We're trying to be as progressive as we can as a city certainly by having the conversation to see what we could do with this, but what occurred at this monument, again, is something that is against the law. It's illegal and is something that the person could face consequences for."

• Baltimore's Confederate Monuments Taken Down Overnight
• Roger Taney Statue Removed From Maryland State House

Last week after four monuments were taken down in Baltimore, a statue of Roger Taney was removed from the Maryland State House following an order from Gov. Larry Hogan and a vote by the State House Trust.

"While we cannot hide from our history – nor should we – the time has come to make clear the difference between properly acknowledging our past and glorifying the darkest chapters of our history," Hogan said in a statement.

Pictured, Columbus obelisk from 1792, courtesy of Baltimore City Historical and Architectural Preservation.