Tourist caught carving 'Ivan + Hayley' into the wall of Colosseum lives in Britain, Italian police say
29 June 2023, 18:58
A tourist who was caught carving graffiti into the brickwork of the Colosseum in Rome lives in Britain, officers investigating the vandalism have said.
A video emerged online that shows an English-speaking tourist carving the words 'Ivan + Hayley 23' into the walls of Rome's ancient Colosseum, sparking fury.
Italian officials vowed to find the vandal and punish him for the offence, which has landed culprits hefty fines in the past.
Police investigating the incident said they worked out that he lived in Britain by comparing photographs.
They did not give a name, a nationality, or the current whereabouts of the suspect.
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Asshole tourist carves name in Colosseum in Rome 6-23-23
The video, shot by an American tourist called Ryan Lutz at the iconic Italian landmark, sees the man scrawling the names into the stonework of the 1,937-year-old building.
Clutching a set of keys, the man cracks a smirk at the camera before returning to the wall and continuing to inscribe the names.
The incident is believed to have taken place last Friday, June 23, according to the person filming the video.
At the time of its construction at around 70 CE, the Colosseum is thought to have seated 50,000 spectators.
Uploaded to YouTube on June 24 by user @rytz5873, the footage was later shared on Reddit with the caption 'A*****e tourist carves name in Colosseum in Rome'.
Social media users commenting on the video called for the arrest of the culprit.
As part of the video, the English-speaking man capturing the footage can be heard saying: 'Are you serious man? That is f***ed up man. Stupid a*****e.'
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If reported to police, the individual could be fined £1750 (€2,065) and face up to one year in prison.
It was at least the fourth time this year that such graffiti was reported at the Colosseum, an act that carries fines of up to 15,000 US dollars and five years in prison.
An Irish tourist was arrested by the Carabinieri police force in September 2020 for allegedly carving his initials into the Colosseum in a similar incident.
Reported to police by the Colosseum's private security firm, the 32-year-old was caught inscribing his two initials into a pillar on the landmark's first floor.
Measuring about 2" high, the letters, inscribed using a metal point, saw the anonymous individual stand accused of damaging a historical and artistic landmark.
