The Torre Annunziata Public Prosecutor’s Office has initiated proceedings against a 37-year-old English tourist for damaging artistic heritage. He risks a fine of several tens of thousands of euros.
If the ancient city of Pompei It is a welcoming land for history lovers, but it is also the scene of numerous incivilities on the part of tourists. On August 7, a 37-year-old man carved the initials of his family and the date of his visit on the wall of an old house in the ancient city.
The Italian press agency reports this HANDLE The man was arrested in flagrante delicto following a call from the staff in charge of monitoring the site. He admitted the facts and apologized. « I wanted to leave a trace of my passage »he declared. He visited, with his wife and two children, the House of the Vestals (house of the priestesses ed.) of the famous archaeological site.
Photos of the damage show letters carved into the plaster next to the front door, painted red nearly 2,000 years ago. The letters “JW LMW MW” at the top of the wall and “MYLAW 07/08/24” further down are clearly visible.
Frequent acts of vandalism
The third most visited site in Italy has to suffer numerous deliberate damages. In 2022 in particular, the Italian authorities reported an Australian tourist who had fun riding a scooter in Pompeii. In 2020, a visitor was arrested after climbing onto a rooftop in the city to take a selfie.
Second CNN the 37-year-old tourist is the subject of an investigation by the local court of Torre Annunziata for “attacking artistic heritage.” The country this year introduced harsher sanctions for those who damage monuments and cultural sites, imposing fines of up to 40,000 euros for those found guilty of damaging monuments.