Former Olympian David Hearn was arrested and charged with misdemeanor for destruction of property for vandalizing the Lincoln Reflecting Pool.

According to independent journalist Emily Miller, a man was arrested after jumping into the pool on Friday and cutting out a “huge piece” of the sealant.

Miller also filmed a man being detained by Park Police. “He grabbed the hose that female National Park Service workers were using to clear the algae,” Miller said.

That man turned out to be cyclist and Olympian David Hearn, 67.

Additionally, per Nick Sortor, the US Park Police are now investigating vandalism on the sealant that reads “86 47.”

Hearn denied he vandalized the Reflecting Pool in a statement to The Washington Post.

Excerpt from The Washington Post:

David Hearn had just finished a loop around Hains Point on Friday as part of a 52-mile bike ride when he swung by the Lincoln Memorial to see the refurbished Reflecting Pool for himself.

Noticing a piece of the new “American flag blue” liner that was partially detached from the pool bottom, Hearn said he reached into the water to see what it felt like. Moments later, as the Bethesda man prepared to leave, U.S. Park Police officers arrested him on a misdemeanor charge of destruction of government property. He is scheduled to appear in D.C. Superior Court on July 9.

In an interview Saturday, Hearn, 67, denied damaging government property and said he had never touched the hose, though he acknowledged that his bike tire may have.

“I didn’t vandalize anything,” Hearn said. “I didn’t destroy or break or peel anything. By the time I realized what was going on, I was being put in handcuffs.”

Hearn, wearing biking gear and a helmet, can be seen in the video with his hands cuffed behind his back. Fragments of conversation are audible. But a pump operating in the background drowns out much of the exchange.

Asked to describe his actions, Hearn said: “I reached in there, and I was able to grab the end of that flapping piece, the already peeling piece. It was still attached to the bottom. I didn’t remove anything.”

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