HYANNIS, MASS. (WHDH) - A man claiming to be a Kennedy relative was arrested after he allegedly used spray paint to vandalize the family’s Cape Cod compound late Tuesday night, authorities said.
Anthony T. Putnam, 32, of Saratoga Springs, New York, pleaded not guilty Wednesday in Barnstable District Court to a charge of vandalism.
Officers responding to a report of a suspicious Toyota Scion in the area of Eugenia Fortes Beach in Hyannisport around 10:30 p.m. learned that the vehicle in question was owned by Putnam, according to Barnstable police.
Putnam was later caught spray painting a compound driveway in the area of Marchant Avenue, a police report stated. When the officer asked Putnam what he was doing, he allegedly said, “I am family.”
Putnam then began to ramble about the Kennedy family not accepting him as one of their own, saying, “I did this because they need to know the truth about me,” according to police.
Police say Putnam used red Rust-Oleum to paint his name in big block letters in the driveway. He also allegedly painted his name in the snow.
A subsequent investigation reportedly revealed that Putnam had visited the compound several times since June and that he repeatedly claimed to be related to the Kennedy family.
Security at the compound told police that Putnam went to the front porch of the compound on Thanksgiving and left a box containing what he claimed was DNA evidence proving he was a Kennedy grandson, the report indicated.
Putnam has since been released on personal recognizance. A judge also ordered him to stay out of Massachusetts and to refrain from contacting the Kennedy family.
An investigation remains ongoing.
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