Vandals Hit WWII Memorial; Felony Charges Possible
Vandals Hit WWII Memorial; Felony Charges Possible
The News
Vandals defaced the National World War II Memorial in Washington on Thursday, spray-painting graffiti on the monument and dumping soap into its fountain, and the Interior Department has opened an investigation.
U.S. Park Police were on the scene, and law enforcement blocked off the area Thursday afternoon.
Graffiti in neon orange on the inner side of the fountain read "Clean hands Dirty $," according to a photo first posted by freelance photographer Andrew Leyden and later captured by CNN, which reported that pink and green graffiti also covered the memorial's Atlantic Pavilion. The fountain, normally clear, overflowed with mounds of foam that appeared to come from soap poured into the water.
Timeline
The World War II Memorial closed for cleaning and renovations. The fountains were modernized and new lighting installed as part of the project, the Washington Examiner reported.
The renovation work was completed at a cost of more than $3 million, according to the Examiner. The memorial was among several District monuments renovated under President Donald Trump's March 2025 executive order "Making the District of Columbia Safe and Beautiful."
The numbers "86 47" — a phrase generally used to signal opposition to Trump — appeared etched into the grass near the Washington Monument, CNN reported.
Photos of the graffiti and the bubble-filled fountain circulated online. The Interior Department confirmed the bubbles were the result of vandalism, not a cleaning process as some online users had speculated. Police sealed off the site and the Interior Department issued a statement condemning the damage.
Reactions
"The World War II Memorial is a sacred place to honor the service of our members of the Armed Forces and the over 400,000 Americans who gave the ultimate sacrifice in WWII," the Interior Department said in a statement. "The vandalism that occurred is an utter disgrace and will not be tolerated. Our U.S. Park Police are on the scene and the investigation is ongoing. The public should know we will find the person responsible for this disgusting act."
Interior Department spokesman Cody Sargent condemned the "disgusting vandalism from deranged losers," the New York Post reported.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars called the soap and the graffiti acts of "profound disrespect" and said it expects "accountability for this disgraceful act and a swift response to restore the memorial."
Scott Wimpfheimer, visiting Washington with family from Minnesota and Alabama, told CNN affiliate WJLA that he has a son and a daughter who served in Iraq. "It is a World War II monument. It's to all the people who died and fought and sacrificed for our country," he said. "I hope they catch him and keep him in jail for a long, long time."
What's Next
The Park Police investigation is ongoing, and no arrest has been announced.
The Washington Examiner reported that under federal law governing monuments, pouring soap into the fountain risks damaging the mechanical pumps — and if repairs cost more than $1,000, the vandal could face felony charges carrying up to a year in prison and a $100,000 fine.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars said it is waiting on the National Park Service's plan for repairing the damage.
More
It is the latest trouble on the National Mall. A Trump-backed renovation of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool ended with peeling paint and a large algae bloom earlier this summer, and the pool remains drained for repairs, CNN reported.
Trump blamed that damage on vandalism, and charges were brought against several people, including a felony count against former Olympic canoeist David Hearn. U.S. Attorney for Washington, D.C., Jeanine Pirro later dropped the charges against all of them, citing flawed installation as the cause, according to the Washington Examiner. Trump has since urged Pirro to reopen the cases.
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