ELMHURST, Queens (WABC) -- Police in Queens are searching for the person who vandalized a statue of the Virgin Mary.
The vandal spray-painted the statue with the word "idol" early Friday outside Cathedral Prep School and Seminary in Elmhurst.
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Staff discovered the vandalism when they showed up for work Friday morning.
The statue was cleaned and restored by Friday afternoon.
The NYPD is investigating the damage as a possible hate crime.
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Anyone with information in regard to the identity of this individual is asked to call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782).
RELATED: Religious statues vandalized in Connecticut
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