Romanian man arrested for trying to steal pieces of Greece's iconic landmark Acropolis

While most tourists visit the Acropolis of Athens in Greece to witness the beauty of the historical landmark, one embarked on a mission to steal it, at least partially. On Tuesday, the Greek police arrested a Romanian man for allegedly trying to steal chunks of marble from the site. 

Authorities arrived at the scene after another tourist spotted the 36-year-old man suspiciously touching a section of the  Propylaea, the ruins of the gateway that leads to the Acropolis. As per local news outlet Proto Thema, the man later told the police that he was unaware of the fact that taking pieces of the landmark was unlawful. 

The man, whose name has not been revealed, was apprehended on charges of theft and is expected to face prosecution under Greece’s antiquities law which mentions that all ancient objects and sites are under state ownership. He will be reporting to local prosecutors this week as part of the procedure. 

Europe's heritage faces wild tourists 

But this isn't the first time that Greece has caught the eye of disorderly travellers. As tourists return to the southeastern country after the coronavirus pandemic, officials have introduced a string of measures to restrict the number of people who can visit the Acropolis. 

As per the New York Times, the site witnesses up to 23,000 visitors each day. The measures, which were rolled out this September, include allowing people to visit between 8 am and 8 pm. Despite the restrictions across Europe, some tourists continue to wreak havoc, with one drunk Irish tourist breaking a lion statue outside the Brussels Stock Exchange in Belgium last week. 

Just days ago, a tourist in the Italian city of Florence climbed onto the Fountain of Neptune to click a photograph, breaking a piece of the statue that dates back to the 16th-century statue. The cost of damages is expected to exceed $5,000, according to the New York Post.