The whole ordeal came to light when another tourist noticed what he was doing and started filming. The video went viral, quickly leading to the identification of both him and his girlfriend, with authorities eventually catching up with the duo in Bulgaria. I bet they were surprised to see the cops.
Now, having been caught, he's in a regretful state, pleading for Italy's forgiveness. But Italy, unfazed by his remorse, seeks justice for their iconic Colosseum, and so does the rest of us!
From The Daily Mail:
A UK based fitness instructor seen by millions around the world defacing the 2,000-year-old Colosseum has apologized to police for his wanton vandalism.
Ivan Dimitrov, 27, who also goes by the name Ivan Hawkins, was exclusively identified by MailOnline, along with his girlfriend Hayley Bracey, 33, after an outraged tourist filmed him carving their names into the ancient brickwork and posted it online.
The couple who live in Bristol - were in the Italian capital Rome as part of a three week European tour – and were located in Bulgaria on Friday by police after they were identified through CCTV footage and hotel records.
Major Roberto Martina, of the carabinieri paramilitary police, told MailOnline: ’Colleagues have spoken with the man and he has expressed his apologies and sincere remorse for what he did.
‘He had contacted us after we secured his mobile telephone from hotel records and left a message for him to call us. He was naturally worried about the legal implications, and these were all explained to him.
‘We told him that a report would be sent to his address in the UK and then the matter would proceed to a trial, probably early next year and he would be able to apologise in person there to the court.
‘We didn’t ask him why he did it, that will be for a judge to hear, we just told him that he was a suspect and was part of the investigation. The girl is not part of any complaint so is an innocent party as far as we are concerned although technically, she could be seen as an accessory.
They should throw the book at these two, so that other ding-a-lings out there will think twice about ruining historic monuments.
