Two 14-year-old Barrington boys carrying spray paint in a backpack early Wednesday morning, Aug. 15, face charges of possession of spray paint by a minor and vandalism.

The boys were spotted on the East Bay Bike Path at around 2:30 am, said Barrington Police Chief John LaCross. Patrol officers Walter Larson and Mark Haddigan and Sgt. Gino Caputo picked up the boys about 25 minutes later.

“Two 14-year-olds out at that time of the morning,” LaCross said. “Where were the parents?”

The boys dropped the backpack when approached by the patrol officers, LaCross said. They soon admitted it was their backpack, which held several cans of spray paint.

The boys allegedly used the cans to paint several words on the bike path, the police chief said.

Police made contact with the parents of the boys over the next hour, according to the police report.

The boys were released into their custody after they were arrested and charged with possession of spray paint by a minor and vandalism/malicious injury to property.