Swastikas Found Scrawled On SUNY Purchase Dorm Room Message Board

PURCHASE, N.Y. (CBSNewYork) -- Swastikas were found scrawled on a dorm room message board at SUNY Purchase College this past weekend.

As WCBS 880's John Metaxas reported, the swastikas were found on Sunday, just hours after Gov. Andrew Cuomo unveiled his plan to combat hate crimes in New York state – in the wake of what Cuomo called a "whirlwind of hate and division all across this country."

The state university had already informed students across its system of a hotline to report such incidents.

Students at the school were expressing their disappointment.

"I don't really understand why anyone on this campus would want to do something like that," one student said. "Maybe someone was under the influence of alcohol or something."

University police on Monday were investigating with a special New York State Police unit that was newly set up to handle such cases.

In March of last year, the Westchester District Attorney's Office launched an investigation after depictions of a swastika and nooses were found drawn on the walls of three campus dormitories in the last week.