Aug 14 - Authorities have arrested a woman and charged her with two felonies in connection with the recent vandalism of the World War Two memorial in Washington, the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, Jeanine Pirro, said on Friday.
The defendant, identified by the prosecutor as Melissa Farris, faces counts of depredation against property of the United States and destruction of veterans memorials, according to Pirro's public statement on social media. Pirro noted that each charge carries a potential sentence of up to 10 years behind bars.
The incident, which occurred on Thursday, involved the memorial's fountain overflowing with bubbly soap and visible graffiti marking several surfaces. One prominent message painted on a section of the site read "Clean hands Dirty $" and responders reported splattering of red and green paint across portions of the memorial.
Alongside her statement, Pirro posted photographs on X that appear to show a woman holding a can near an area of the memorial stained with red paint. Pirro did not supply additional details or identify the source of the images used in the post.
Officials have not provided further public information about the investigation, the provenance of the posted images, or whether additional charges or evidence are pending. Pirro's office did not immediately respond to an inquiry for more detail, and Farris could not be reached for comment.
The available public account is limited to the charges announced by the U.S. Attorney and the visual material shared on social media. The sequence of events, investigative steps taken since the vandalism, and the role of any other suspects or witnesses remain unstated in the prosecutor's disclosure.
As the case progresses through the federal system, the charges—depredation against United States property and destruction of veterans memorials—carry statutory maximum penalties of up to a decade in prison. Beyond the legal exposure described by the prosecutor, public reporting to date has focused on the physical effects at the memorial and the images shared by the U.S. Attorney's office.