NJ Man Carved QAnon Hashtag At America's Stonehenge: NH Cops

SALEM, NH — A four-month investigation into who damaged a New Hampshire landmark with carvings into a 4,000-year-old stone tablet, including a hashtag frequently promoted by QAnon supporters on Twitter, have led to an arrest, according to police and court documents.

Mark Russo, 50, of Kings Highway in Swedesboro, New Jersey, was arrested on Monday on a single felony criminal mischief charge.

According to police, an officer was sent to America's Stonehenge on Haverhill Road in Salem for a vandalism report on Sept. 29, 2019. When the officer arrived, he spoke to the owner of the property who reported discovering "an unusual wooden cross with several pictures and drawings, suspended from two trees," near the main archaeological site. The property owner canvassed the area and also discovered "significant damage" to the main site's stone sacrificial tablet.

"The stone table was carved with 'WWG1WGA' and 'IAMMARK,'" the officer wrote. "(The owner) stated that this tablet was approximately 4,000 years old."

Photos, the officer noted, were also tacked to the cross. One was of a young boy; another was of two men. A third, smaller photo featured a man, too. There were also two sketched drawings attached to the cross. The sketches, the officer wrote, appeared to depict the crucifixion.

During the course of the investigation, it was discovered that "WWG1WGA" stood for "Where We Go 1, We Go All" — a slogan and hashtag used by supporters of QAnon.

A few weeks later, the detective made contact with another person whose wife was employed as an anthropologist in another state about the vandalism case. The man shared a recent tweet from a now-suspended Twitter account that had images from America's Stonehenge. Some of the photos included the cross and a passport photo of the man that was pinned to the cross.

Another owner of the property also gave the detective some photos and video of a man who attempted to gain access to the site without paying before the vandalism incident.

In December 2019, the detective received more information from Twitter, including a tweet posted by "iammark." The Federal Bureau of Investigation, as part of a background check request, informed the detective later that the Twitter account belonged to Russo (the account is currently in protective status).

In one post, the detective wrote, "iammark" stated, "Do you see any reason not to take down their portals? Boston specifically oh and the 66 Baal shaft? Oh made a few improvements @American Stonehenge(crying emoji) sorry Scottie Wolters my bad (middle finger emoji)."

The detective compared photos on Twitter, a Pennsylvania driver's license, and video provided by the property owners to determine Russo was a suspect in the vandalism incident.

An arrest warrant was issued for Russo on Sept. 21, 2020, and he was picked up on March 1. He was arraigned and released on $3,000 cash bail and is due at a dispositional hearing in Rockingham County Superior Court on April 21.

The property owner estimated the costs of repairing the damage to the site to be more than $1,500.

Editor's note: This post was derived from information supplied by the Salem NH Police Department and does not indicate a conviction. This link explains the removal request process for New Hampshire Patch police reports.

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