Olympic canoeist David Hearn has been indicted this Thursday by a federal grand jury on a felony charge for allegedly vandalizing the Washington National Mall Reflecting Pool, recently remodeled by President Donald Trump’s administration, according to authorities.
Federal Prosecutor Jeanine Pirro reported in a press conference that Hearn, 67, is accused of tearing off a piece of sealant material from the bottom of the pond last month.
The pond was renovated by orders of President Donald Trump, who presented it as one of his main city beautification projects for the country’s 250th anniversary of independence.
The renovation, valued at 16 million dollars, consisted of emptying the facility, installing a new dark blue lining, and updating algae control. But it has not shown the expected results, pushing the American leader to blame acts of vandalism rather than problems with the remodeling.
Once remodeled, it was inaugurated at the beginning of June and quickly began to suffer from the appearance of algae, a recurring problem that has affected this large artificial pond, the longest in the United States, since it was inaugurated in 1922.
More Read
We recommend reading:Banco Popular sponsors the photographic exhibition Marileidy: images of a champion
At the same time, the dark blue lining that Trump chose for the bottom of the pond appeared cracked. On June 22, Trump attributed these events to “vandalism,” which was criticized by opponents of the project.
Trump claims that the alleged “saboteurs” cut the pond liner right after the inauguration, or poured fertilizer into the water.
More Read
Hearn has denied causing damage to the reflecting pool and says he simply touched a loose piece of the blue lining that was peeling off “to satisfy my curiosity as a citizen,” while out for a bike ride.
But Prosecutor Pirro has pointed out that National Park Service employees saw the canoeist removing the lining from the bottom of the pond.
The accusation comes after the arrest or summons of several people in connection with the alleged damage suffered by the Reflecting Pool.
Hearn’s lawyers issued a statement cited by CBS in which they claim that their client is innocent and that the “formal indictment reflects the administration’s effort to shift blame for its own failures”.
The controversy over the work moved to social media, where there are videos that supposedly show people putting their hands into the pond, now fenced off for the independence events scheduled for this Saturday, July 4.
