Never miss any of the fun stuff. Get the biggest stories and wackiest takes from the Daily Star, including our special WTF Wednesday email
We have more newsletters
Just weeks after clueless gym instructor Ivan Dimitrov etched his and his girlfriend’s names into the 2,000-year-old bricks of Rome’s world-famous Colosseum, a young Swiss woman has been caught on camera vandalising the historic monument.
An Italian tour guide filmed the 17-year-old woman etching the letter "N" in the ancient walls of the vast amphitheatre where hundreds of gladiators fought to the death.
The girl and her parents were then taken to the police headquarters in Rome's Piazza Venezia for questioning, according to local media reports.
READ MORE: UK gym instructor who carved name into Rome Colosseum says he 'didn't know it was old'
The Italian authorities have not released the suspect’s name, but it’s understood that she could face a fine of up to €15,000 for damaging cultural property as part of a strict government clampdown on vandalism.
Like misguided Bristol personal trainer Dimitrov, the Swiss teen could also potentially face five years behind bars.
Dimitrov, 27, was caught on camera as he scratched “Ivan + Hayley 23” into the ancient gladiatorial arena’s walls.
Dimitrov wrote a grovelling apology in which he claimed he hadn’t realised how old the vast arena actually was.
In the letter, he praised those who “guard the inestimable historical and artistic value of the Colosseum with dedication, care and sacrifice”, before adding: “It is with deep embarrassment that only after what regrettably happened did I learn of the antiquity of the monument.”
One unimpressed Rome city council official rejected the apology: “What nonsense and what a surreal letter. What level of education does this man have not to know the significance of the Colosseum?
“It's just an attempt to pacify – and if he was so concerned why take almost two weeks to write?
“Why didn't he apologise sooner? He must have known what he did as it was all over the world's media.
“We intend to pursue this through the judicial system along with the authorities at the Colosseum and hope to see an appropriate punishment when it comes to court”.
The Colosseum was built over the ruins of Emperor Nero’s palace by some 100,000 slaves – mainly captives from Rome’s war with the Jews – and was completed in the year 80 AD.
Keep up to date with all the latest news stories by signing up for one of Daily Star's free newsletters here.
- Crime
Source: Read Full Article
