Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Monument vandalized on Upper West Side

NEW YORK (WABC) -- Two teens have been arrested, accused of spray-painting their names, doodles and profanity on a New York historic monument early on Thursday.

Around 3:20 a.m., New York City police said they responded to the Soldiers' and Sailors' Memorial Monument on Riverside Drive and West 89th Street where they found Mike Kushnir, 17, of New York, and a 15-year-old girl using red spray paint on the memorial.

According to a statement from the New York City Police Department, Kushnir attempted to flee from police, but was apprehended. Both he and the girl had spray paint on them.

Both teens were arrested and charged with felony criminal mischief. Kushnir was separately charged with defacing a city-owned lamppost in May. In that incident, Kushnir used a blue marker to scrawl "Trap" on the metal pole.

The 15-year-old girl, also of New York, has been charged as a juvenile. She was additionally charged with criminal mischief and making graffiti for a March incident in which she tagged a neighborhood mailbox with her initials.

The statue was completed in 1902 and designated a city landmark in 1976. It became a state landmark in 2001.