DENVER — Christopher Balli of Aurora, a conservative street artist who goes by the name Sabo, was cited by Denver Police last Thursday for a municipal violation for illegal postings. Violations of that municipal code are punishable by a fine of up to $999 and up to 300 days in jail.
“This is a parking ticket, but they could turn it into something bad,” Balli said on his YouTube channel on Saturday. “Anything that I say here could be used against me in a court of law.”
Balli posted a photo of the citation on social media, cropping out the portion with his legal name.
Balli, 56, had taken responsibility for signs affixed to existing signage along Colfax Avenue in Denver and Aurora, reading “Kamala’s Illegals” and “Blacks Must Sit At The Back Of The Bus. Kamala’s Migrants Sit In The Front.”
Balli said he was motivated to post the signs because of reports that a Venezuelan gang forced the closure of an apartment complex in Aurora. The City of Aurora and Aurora Police have said the closure was not due to gang activity but rather years of neglect by a landlord.
The citation issued last week is for similar signs placed around the city in March, not for the recent signage put up on Colfax Avenue. Denver Police said the recent incident was being investigated as a possible bias-motivated crime. The Denver City Attorney’s Office did not respond to a request for comment.
Police said signs reading “Migrant Hookers” and “25 Dollars” were placed at 12th Avenue and Acoma Street and the 1400 block of North Grant Street. A sign reading “Undocumented Democrats” was placed at Colfax and Broadway.
Photos of some of those signs are prominently featured on Balli’s website.
The self-described Republican street artist also claimed responsibility for anti-migrant signs placed outside the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.
In August, in a livestream discussing the racist signs placed in Denver in March, Balli used a racial slur for a Latino journalist who had reported on the signage. Balli had not been identified as being involved at the time.
Denver Police Chief Ron Thomas said investigators had conversations about applying bias-motivated crime statutes before deciding to proceed with a municipal citation.
“I do think the person that did that should be held accountable for the way they made this community feel,” Thomas said.
The signs drew widespread condemnation from Colorado’s elected Democrats.
Democratic Gov. Jared Polis responded, saying in part, “There is no room for hate in our state.”
In a YouTube livestream the day before the posting of the signs on Colfax Avenue, Balli complained about Venezuelans and other Latinos and listed specific Latino nationalities he would use as “target practice” during a conflict.
“If a civil war breaks out and the f---ing Guatemalans and Ecuadorians are like coming over the fence and stuff like that, it is straight-up target practice,” Balli said.
Balli did not respond to emailed requests for comment about the citation. When reached by phone by a 9NEWS journalist, Balli groaned and hung up.
Balli had a foray into mainstream Republican politics and media attention in 2016 when his art promoting then-presidential candidate Ted Cruz was sold on the campaign’s website before being pulled after Sabo’s history of racist comments surfaced.
The Advocate reported on his transphobic posters targeting Caitlyn Jenner in 2017.
In 2021, his long history of activism was profiled by the New York Times.
Balli has said he moved to Colorado from California to escape its liberal governance. He now frequently bemoans Democrats’ policies in the Denver area.
On Sunday, Balli posted that he is planning to sell his house in Aurora.