Officials ask for help identifying person in Reflecting Pool damage investigation
The U.S. Park Police is seeking the public's assistance in identifying a person captured on camera as part of an investigation into damage to the Reflecting Pool and the alleged destruction of government property in Washington, D.C.
Police said the incident happened Friday at about 3:36 p.m. at the Reflecting Pool on the grounds of the Lincoln Memorial in the nation's capital.
Video released by police shows what appears to be a person kneeling next to the Reflecting Pool and reaching an arm into the water.
The person appears to have dark hair and is wearing a gray shirt and black shorts while carrying a light-colored handbag.
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Police said the investigation follows President Donald Trump's attempt to resurface the Reflecting Pool, which resulted in peeling paint and algae that discolored the intended "American Flag Blue" appearance of the water to a swampy green.
Trump and other officials said multiple people were arrested and others were cited for allegedly damaging the Reflecting Pool.
"They went down with probably a box cutter or a very sharp razor of some kind or a knife, and they cut, and then they started ripping it up," Trump said in the Oval Office on Wednesday. "You know why? Because they’re sick people."
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"These people should go to jail for a long time," Trump said, adding that he believed the pool was damaged because of what he called "Trump Derangement Syndrome."
Trump said some water will be released from the pool so that repairs can be made. The president had previously speculated that fertilizer was poured into the pool and caused the algae.
"Around the Reflecting Pool, we have a huge field of grass," he said. "They poured acid on the grass, the same people, I guess."
"It killed – you know, acid kills grass quickly – so that’s being fixed," Trump continued.
On Monday, he said chemicals were "illegally placed in the water."
