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'Flat Earth' Message Apparently Behind Hillside Graffiti

RIVERSIDE (CBSLA.com) — The hills of Riverside are apparently speaking to us - albeit with a strange message.

The words "Google Flat Earth" were found carved into Mount Rubidoux this week in letters that were approximately ten feet tall and visible from the air.

An aerial photo posted to social media by the Riverside Police Department's air support unit showed only the "Google" portion of the message was still discernible as of Feb. 4.

While the Riverside Parks Department brought in crews from a CAL FIRE camp in Norco to re-seed the area so the grass can grow and cover up the letters, a man believed to be behind the message reportedly encountered a city employee at the location Monday.

He was wearing an orange construction-style vest and carrying a shovel and pick, city parks director Adolfo Cruz told the Press-Enterprise.

"The gentleman was telling the staff member that we live on a flat earth," the report quoted Cruz as saying.

Investigators have identified the suspect, but it wasn't clear whether he would face any charges.

Riverside police aren't saying exactly what the message means, but it could refer to an increasingly popular - and thoroughly discredited - theory that the Earth is in fact flat, not spherical, in shape.

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