3 German tourists deface national park in paintball and slingshot shooting spree

Three tourists from Germany have been cited after going on a paintball shooting spree that defaced road signs, bathrooms and dumpsters throughout Joshua Tree National Park, officials said.

On Sunday, a park ranger who was patrolling the Jumbo Rocks Campground at Joshua Tree National Park noticed “fresh yellow paintball splatter on structures and signs,” according to a statement from the National Park Service released on Thursday.

“Law enforcement rangers were called to the campground to investigate further and found a slingshot in plain view inside a vehicle,” officials said. “After being questioned, the visitors admitted to firing paintballs with a compressed paintball gun, known as a paintball marker, and slingshots the night before.”

Rangers subsequently searched the vehicle and recovered “three slingshots, a paintball marker, paintballs, and other related equipment as evidence,” park officials confirmed.

Authorities have not released any information on the suspects involved in this case but did confirm that the three suspects questioned were tourists from Germany, according to the statement detailing the incident from the National Park Service.

“Defacing or altering the NPS landscape, no matter how small, is against the law,” said Joshua Tree National Park Acting Chief Ranger Jeff Filosa. “It diminishes the natural environment that millions of people travel the world to enjoy. The park is regularly tasked with removing graffiti of all types, using time and resources that could be better dedicated to other priorities.”

Upon further investigation, park rangers also learned that at least 11 roadway signs along Park Boulevard from Jumbo Rocks campground to the Maze Trailhead, two miles from the west entrance of the park, had been shot with yellow paintballs.

Law enforcement rangers issued each of the three suspects a federal violation notice for vandalizing, defacing, or destroying property. The violation incurs a maximum penalty of a $5,000 fine and up to six months in prison.

“Paintball markers and slingshots are legally considered weapons and are prohibited in National Park Service-administered lands,” authorities said.

The case is currently under investigation and the park's maintenance staff is undergoing cleanup at the park.