Alleged tagger pleads not guilty

A 23-year-old man accused of tagging his graffiti moniker on dozens of Metropolitan Transportation Authority buses was charged Friday with 49 counts of felony vandalism and three misdemeanor counts of possession of tools to commit vandalism.

Gustavo Romero, a South Los Angeles resident whom authorities say uses the moniker “Guser,” pleaded not guilty to the charges.

He remains in custody in lieu of $980,000 bail, said Sandi Gibbons, a spokeswoman for the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office.

If convicted on all counts, Romero faces a possible maximum state prison term of 35 years and six months, Gibbons said.

Romero is accused of vandalizing MTA buses from 2003 to 2006, but because of the statute of limitations on some alleged acts, the bulk of the felony counts come from crimes committed in 2005 and 2006.

-- Francisco Vara-Orta