Six tourists were arrested on Sunday, January 12, for damages caused to the Machu Picchu Sanctuary. Authorities state that the group provoked the fall of a stone from a structure, and at least one of them defecated in the citadel.
Twenty-eight year old Nahuel Gómez from Argentina appeared in front of the Preparatory Investigation Court of Machu Picchu, having been accused as the instigator of the damages caused to the citadel. Gómez was ordered to appear every ten days in court to register his signature during the criminal prosecution, and to pay a sworn bond of S/ 3000.
The National Police of Peru found the group of six tourists illegally inside Machu Picchu, in the Temple of the Sun, at 5:50 am on Sunday. Evidence shows damage to a “lithic artifact” that fell off a wall approximately six meters above the ground. Fecal material was also found in the area.
Gómez did not accept responsibility and his lawyer appealed the measure during Tuesday’s hearing. The other five tourists – from Chile, France, Brazil and Argentina – are in the hands of State Security where their immigration status is being reviewed. According to the police, the immigration status for two of the tourists had expired.
The five other tourists are: Favian Eduardo Vera Vergara (Chile, 30); Marion Lucie Martinez (France, 26); Cristiano da Silva Ribiero (Brazil, 30); Magdalena Abril Retamal (Brazil, 20); Leandro Sactiva (Argentina, 32).
Source: Andina
Cover photo: Andina