Not again: Two teen tourists reportedly caught defacing Colosseum
Two more tourists have been reportedly caught defacing the Colosseum in Rome.
This time, the culprits are teenagers.
According to Repubblica Roma, the first incident involved a 17-year-old girl from Switzerland, who was caught by a local tour guide carving the letter ‘N’ into the historic landmark on July 14.
The tour guide also filmed the incident and footage was shared by Italian news agency Agenzia ANSA.
Nuovo sfregio al Colosseo, una turista svizzera incide le sue iniziali: rischia il carcere e una maximulta. E’ stata filmata da una guida e denunciata #ANSA https://t.co/LwYpfzyrdK pic.twitter.com/ZptKpOD1Db
— Agenzia ANSA (@Agenzia_Ansa) July 15, 2023
The guide proceeded to alert Colosseum security, who then reported it to the Carabinieri (Italian police force).
On Saturday, another teen tourist was caught defacing the monument.
According to Italy’s Rai News, the 17-year-old German student was reportedly etching into a wall on the ground floor of the Colosseum. The Carabinieri were alerted of the vandalism as well.
Both teens face fines of up to €15,000 (C$22,198.85) and possible jail time.
The latest incidents of vandalism come after a man was caught on film carving his and his fiancée’s names into the walls of the Colosseum last month.
The words “Ivan+Haley 23” were carved into the wall using keys, according to Italian news agency ANSA.
The man was later identified as Ivan Dimitrov and he also faces a hefty €15,000 fine and jail time.
The Colosseum isn’t the only landmark to face vandalism of late.
Earlier this month, it was reported that a Canadian teen was questioned by local Japanese authorities for allegedly vandalizing a UNESCO-listed temple in Nara, Japan.
The incident took place at the historic eighth-century Toshodaiji Temple, where the teen had allegedly carved the letter “J” and the name “Julian” into one of the temple’s pillars.
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