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He had come to meet the Pope.
But instead of a private audience, he was taken away by security forces a little later: In the Vatican, a tourist from the USA destroyed two marble statues out of frustration.
Apparently he thought he could speak to Francis on the spot.
This is reported by the Italian newspaper "Il Messaggero".
According to the report, the 60-year-old was handed over to the Italian police by the Vatican gendarmerie for further interrogation after a fit of rage.
The man who had previously bought a ticket for the Chiaramonti Museum
have been in Rome for three days.
One of the two busts was completely broken.
The sculptures were immediately taken to the workshop of the Vatican Museums.
Employees there take care of the restoration of exhibits.
The broken busts date from the 1st century and were part of the "small figures" created under Pope Pius VII Chiaramonti (1800 - 1823).
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