A Berlin man is facing accusations that he violated the state’s Civil Rights Act by repeatedly stealing LGBTQ pride flags from a residential property.
On three separate evenings in 2023, 22-year-old Hayden Anderson trespassed onto a property in Berlin and ripped down pride flags, according to court paperwork. He admitted the theft to local police officers, and was arrested last October. He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor criminal charges.
Now, prosecutors from the New Hampshire Attorney General’s Civil Rights Unit have filed a separate complaint, alleging Anderson violated a state law meant to protect people from crimes motivated by race, gender, sexual orientation and other aspects of a person’s identity.
State officials allege Anderson violated the Civil Rights Act three times, with each incident carrying a potential $5,000 fine, but no jail time. Prosecutors are also seeking to prohibit him from being within 350 feet of the alleged victims’ homes or places of employment.
"Acts of hate, intolerance, and discrimination, like those alleged in this case, have no place in New Hampshire,” Attorney General John Formella said in a statement. “They undermine the basic rights of individuals to express themselves freely.”
Anderson could not be reached for comment as of Thursday afternoon.
According to legal filings, he was joined by at least one other person during the initial flag theft on June 17, 2023, but both people had their faces covered. Anderson and the accomplice also took a Satanic Temple Flag and a Ukrainian flag from the property.
On separate occasions in August and September, Anderson was again captured on surveillance footage again removing pride flags from the home. Berlin Police ultimately identified Anderson, who admitted to the thefts during an interview. Police said they found six stolen flags inside of his closet.
