Finnish tourist detained after vandalising statue on Easter Island

Man could face lengthy jail term and fines

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There are ways and ways of spending Easter. One Finnish tourist picked a markedly less than satisfactory one, and has sparked a minor international incident.
      A 26-year-old Finnish man was arrested and detained on Monday on the Chilean overseas territory of Easter Island after he had allegedly broken off a piece - apparently an ear-lobe - of one of the massive Moai statues for which the island is justly world-famous.
      The statues, which number in the hundreds and were carved out of volcanic ash or tuff between 500 and 1,000 years ago as representations of dead ancestors, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site and are mostly located within the Rapa Nui National Park.
     
Vandalising them is not regarded with any sympathy, and the Finnish tourist could face a lengthy prison sentence and a fine of up to EUR 12,000 for his actions.
      On Tuesday the event became a major news item in Chile, with the nation’s largest daily El Mercurio featuring the story on its front page.
      The article quotes an official as saying the majestic statue had made an impression on the Finnish tourist, who wished then to take a piece home with him.
     
The Finnish Embassy in Santiago has been in contact with the police on Easter Island, but has not yet spoken with the arrested man.
      According to an embassy attaché, Suvikki Silvennoinen, the young man had gone up to the four-metre-high statue on Sunday and had broken off a piece of the ear. He was spotted and was arrested the following day.
      The embassy official reported that the man had been told he could contact them, but that he had chosen not to.
     
A local woman told authorities she had witnessed the theft on Sunday at Anakena Beach, and that she saw the man running away from the scene of the crime carrying a piece of the statue in his hand.
      He was later identified by the tattoos he wore on his body, which the woman had described.
      The statue in question was not one of the very largest on the island - the magnificent Moai monuments, erected by Polynesian peoples who occupied Easter Island, can be anything up to 20 metres in height.


Links:
  Easter Island (Wikipedia)
  Rapa Nui National Park and World Heritage Site
  Moai (Wikipedia)

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