Swimming in UNESCO-protected canals. Breaking into historic sites. Driving down the world’s most famous staircase and smashing priceless sculptures in a fit of pique. And just when you thought that was as bad as it gets: vandalizing one of the world’s iconic monuments. With Europe seeing an explosion of visitors a year after Covid travel restrictions dropped, incidents of visitors behaving badly in Italy show no sign of abating.
This week, a young tourist was filmed allegedly carving what appeared to be the names of himself and his girlfriend into the wall of the Colosseum, sparking Italy’s culture minister Gennaro Sangiuliano to call for a manhunt to identify the pair. Three days later, Rome’s carabinieri police force announced that they had identified a suspect, resident in the UK.
