By Tim Binnall
Italian authorities have managed to identify the tourist who carved a proverbial love note into Rome's famed Colosseum and, in response, the vandal has offered a rather dubious excuse for his actions. The mischievous man sparked headlines last week after he was spotted scratching "Ivan + Haley 23" into a wall of the 2000-year-old site. A video of the brazen act of vandalism, which was filmed by fellow tourist Ryan Lutz, led to both widespread repudiation by outraged officials in Italy as well as a fevered search for the perpetrator. Fortunately, after a few days of looking into the case, authorities reportedly determined that a man named Ivan Dimitrov, who was visiting the country from England, was the individual responsible for the incident.
Alas, by the time the suspected vandal had been identified, Dimitrov had already returned to his home in the English city of Bristol. Be that as it may, Italian authorities informed the young man that he is currently being investigated for his actions and that he could face a fine of around $15,000 as well as up to five years in prison. No doubt attempting to do damage control, Dimitrov subsequently penned a letter to the mayor of Rome as well as "to the Italians and to the whole world," wherein he reportedly expressed considerable remorse for damaging "an asset which, in fact, is the heritage of all humanity."
Although he conceded that he now understands "the seriousness of the deed committed," Dimitrov went on to claim that "it is with deep embarrassment that only after what regrettably happened did I learn of the antiquity of the monument." As one might imagine, the young man's assertion that he had no understanding of the ancient site's significance when he was scratching his name into it has produced a fresh round of anger from Italian officials and media outlets, who understandably feel that he is trying to play them for fools. While Dimitrov's apology may very well have been sincere, one imagines that it probably did more harm than good as far as avoiding the hefty legal penalties he now faces.