WASHINGTON, June 29 (DC Times Online) — Interior Secretary Doug Burgum said people accused of vandalizing the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C., will face “full” prosecution after investigators said the pool’s liner had been cut in a long slice.
Burgum said on Fox News that the damage stretched about 350 feet and appeared to have been made with a box cutter or similar sharp tool. He said fencing was being installed around the site as crews and law enforcement prepared for July 4 events near the National Mall.
“When people are attacking it, it is like an attack on our country,” Burgum said. He said those responsible would be prosecuted “to the full extent of the law.”
Burgum said authorities had made seven arrests, issued multiple citations and filed 18 police reports. Public accounts have varied, however. President Donald Trump said in a Truth Social post that six people had been arrested and seven others cited, while BBC reported that U.S. Park Police said five people had been arrested and five others had received federal citations.
BBC and WGXA reported that a National Park Service representative and an Interior Department court filing said the pool’s liner was cut with a sharp knife or razor. The reporting reviewed for this story did not identify all of the people arrested or cited, or say what charges, if any, had been filed against them.
