San Xavier priest prays for graffiti attacker [View all]

[Ptah]

This morning, when Rev. Edward Sarrazin learned of the black graffiti defacing the exterior of the Mission San Xavier del Bac, his emotions fluctuated between sadness and anger.

"When I saw it, my heart dropped," he said. "I was also outraged that they would desecrate such a historic landmark."

The vandalism, discovered early this morning, is under investigation by the Tohono O'odham Nation Police Department.

Workers were busy this morning removing graffiti from the walls of the mission, south of Tucson in the San Xavier District of the Tohono O'odham Nation.