A man reported to be one of Tacoma’s most prolific – and popular – taggers has been charged for allegedly spray-painting a wall and concrete barrier along area freeways last year.
Pierce County prosecutors charged Tony Kim Lim, thought to be tagger “XCIT,” on Sept. 30 with one count of first-degree malicious mischief, a Class B felony, and another count of third-degree malicious mischief, a gross misdemeanor.
Lim, 46, declined to comment when reached by The News Tribune on Thursday, and he had no attorney listed in the court records as of Friday afternoon. Lim has been summoned to Superior Court for arraignment Oct. 15, court records show.
In charging documents, Lim is accused of twice tagging Washington State Department of Transportation property, once on June 1, 2024 and again on Oct. 14, 2024.
In a police report attached to charging documents, a state trooper described Lim as one of the area’s most prolific taggers.
“The tag Lim was in the process of writing was the X of the ‘XCIT’ tag, which is all over the freeways and city streets,” state trooper C. Overend-Pearson wrote in a police report documenting the June 1, 2024 incident in which Lim allegedly was caught tagging a barrier on state Route 7 near South 38th Street.
The trooper added that the “XCIT tag is commonly with a picture of a daisy … these tags are everywhere.”
According to the report, Overend-Pearson later contacted WSDOT for cost estimates “for the most recent XCIT clean up jobs they have done in the area.”
“They provided 9 WSDOT clean ups including photos, and the City of Tacoma provided 1,” the trooper wrote. “The total clean up costs for XCIT as of June 12, 2024 is $32,217.32.”
Lim was arrested again four months later after a WSDOT camera spied someone spray-painting a tag on a wall along Interstate 5 near SR-7, according to another trooper’s report.
Lim, who allegedly had paint on his pants when confronted, told arresting trooper D.M. Cleary he was “just out for a walk,” according to the police report. The trooper reported finding a bag full of spray paint and other items associated with tagging nearby.
Multiple online comments paint XCIT in a more favorable light.
A number of users of Tacoma’s Reddit page (r/Tacoma) praised XCIT’s tags for their bright color and style.
“XCIT’s daisies are my favorite, they always brighten my day whenever and wherever I see them,” one Tacoma Reddit user posted in March 2025.
Several users agreed, with another writing, “XCIT’s colors are always delightful. Love seeing the style and skill progress.”
Overend-Pearson expressed a different opinion.
“Lim could care less how much he is costing taxpayers of Washington state with this reckless vandalism,” the trooper wrote in the police report for the June 1 incident. “He is constantly putting the safety of the public, WSDOT employees and State Troopers at risk.
“I respectfully request Lim be charged accordingly.”
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