The man who scrawled his name and that of his girlfriend on the wall of Rome’s Colosseum has sent an apology to the authorities in Rome.
According to Wednesday’s edition of the Mesajero newspaper, in the statement the culprit admitted that he allegedly “did not know about the antiquity of the monument.”
“Aware of the seriousness of the crime,” the Italian newspaper quoted him as saying, “with these lines I would like to offer my most sincere and honest apologies to the Italians and to the whole world for the damage caused to the cultural heritage that is the heritage of all humanity.”
The Bulgarian who scribbled on the Coliseum apologized
According to the British publication MailOnline, the tourist who carved his name and that of his girlfriend on the wall of the Coliseum is a Bulgarian-born fitness instructor who lives in Great Britain.
According to the same media outlet, 27-year-old Ivan Dimitrov, a native of Lovech, is the man videotaped by American tourist Ryan Lutz carving the words “Ivan+Hailey 23” into the brickwork of the first-century cultural monument with keys.
The Italian press reported that the tourist was being investigated by Rome’s prosecutor’s office on charges of damaging cultural property. He faces two to five years in prison and a fine of 2,500 to 15,000 euros.
The Colosseum is one of the most popular tourist sites in the world and a major symbol of Rome. It is visited by more than 7 million people a year.
2023-07-05 11:21:48
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