Local artists claim responsibility for 'Hollyweed' prank as security evaluations underway

The internet had a blast with this weekend's "Hollyweed" prank. Now, a pair of local artists are claiming they are responsible for the iconic sign's alteration.

In an interview with Vice, Zach Fernandez and his former wife Sarah Fern claim the prank was inspired by a similar modification in 1976 by Cal State Northridge art student Danny Finegood.

Fernandez is known as "Jesus Hands" in the art world. That name can be seen written on the fabric he used to alter the sign in up-close photos. He argued it wasn't vandalism because they used clamps and the fabric to make the modifications easily removable.

By Tuesday, the additions were taken down and an investigation into the incident was underway, police told KPCC.

Twenty-five security cameras line the various pathways up to the sign, and eight more survey the parking lot for the area, said Chris Baumgart, chairman of the Hollywood Sign Trust. Baumgart said he hopes by Thursday investigators can piece together exactly how someone climbed up the sign and hung tarps on the O's without getting caught.

"How did the person slip through?," he said, ticking off some of the questions investigators were asking. "Was it just a matter of whether it was foggy or rainy and the cameras didn't see? Or was there some other issue?"

Baumgart said his concerns were for the safety of whoever climbed the 45-foot sign to hang the banners, and the residents of the neighborhood closest to the sign, where dozens of visitors came to gawk at the "Hollyweed" prank.

"Imagine if you had a relative who was elderly and needed medical help," he said. "If because of the 'Hollyweed' and the visitors who showed up [to take pictures] you couldn’t get an ambulance to help somebody, a tragedy could happen."

Police told the Associated Press Wednesday afternoon that they're talking with an unnamed suspect in the trespassing case, but that they won't be making an arrest. Rather, they'll present their findings to the district attorney and leave it to prosecutors to decide whether to file charges.

It is illegal to go near the Hollywood sign — the closest visitors can get is a hike in Griffith Park, due to safety concerns.

Baumgart said once they evaluate the video footage and see how the trespassers got past existing barriers, determinations will be made on whether and how to update the security system.