Tourist accused of causing over $8,000 in damages to iconic Roman statue
A 22-year-old German tourist has been accused of causing around €5,000 (A$8,400) in damages to the 16th-century Fountain of Neptune in the Piazza della Signoria, Italy.
Surveillance footage obtained by the police allegedly show the tourist - who has not been named - climbing over the protective barrier around the monument in the early hours of Monday morning as he posed for a photo on the statue.
His two friends, who stood outside of the barrier, took the photos of him and they all fled the scene when the alarm went off, according to city authorities.
"According to the investigators' reconstruction, after 1 o'clock this morning the tourist, in Piazza della Signoria with two other friends, climbed over the fence of the Neptune Fountain and climbed onto the edge of the pool," the statement read.
"With a jump he then climbed onto the horse's leg, reaching the base of the carriage and, after having some photos taken by his friends, he climbed down," they added.
"During the descent he placed his foot again on the hoof, damaging it. As soon as the alarm went off, however, the young man had already managed to escape with the two others."
The tourist will be charged under the city penal code that prohibits the "destruction, dispersion, deterioration, disfigurement, soiling or illicit use of cultural or landscape assets."
He has been detained in Florence and could be fined and banned from entering the city if convicted.
Image: X (formerly Twitter)