A former U.S. Olympian was indicted Thursday in federal court on a felony charge, after the Trump administration accused him of vandalism at the Lincoln Memorial's Reflecting Pool.
David “Davey” Hearn, a former U.S. Olympic canoeist, was indicted in U.S. Superior Court on one count of destruction of property, which is a felony.
Hearn was arrested on suspicion of vandalism on June 19, after stopping at the pool and touching a segment of liner that had detached from the pool.
Hearn said he was detained for more than five hours in the incident.
"The evidence shows we will prove beyond a reasonable doubt Hearn willfully destroyed property at the Lincoln Memorial reflecting Pool," D.C. U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said Thursday.
If convicted, Hearn faces up to 10 years in prison.
Hearn has vehemently denied any wrongdoing, suggesting he was only investigating the peeling paint.
"Davey Hearn is innocent. These charges are outrageous and should be alarming to every American," Hearn's attorneys said in a statement. "This indictment reflects the administration’s effort to shift blame for their own failures. On the eve of our nation's Independence Day, Americans should be deeply concerned by the misuse of government power against an ordinary citizen based on a concocted narrative. The justice system exists to determine facts, not to provide political cover."
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The indictment is the latest in a string of controversies attached to the Trump administration's Reflecting Pool renovations.
Costs for the project have ballooned to more than $15 million, involving no-bid contracts awarded to companies with a history of support for President Trump. Algae growing in the pool has resisted efforts to clean and remove it, and experts say it may harm local ecosystems when it's pumped into municipal drains.
And the effort to repaint the bottom of the pool blue has resulted in segments of the coating floating free, drawing attention from visitors.
The president has suggested multiple other arrests have stemmed from alleged vandalism of the project. He has claimed that vandals deliberately cut into the lining and has provided conflicting figures when citing damage, at times alleging either 250 or 350 feet of lining were cut.
Chain-link fencing has now been erected around portions of the Reflecting Pool, in advance of planned 4th of July fireworks events.
