Late on Oct. 21, Prince William County police arrested Miguel Alonso Maldonado Soriano as he vandalized the nine-foot limestone statue depicting the iconic Iwo Jima flag-raising on Mount Suribachi. The sculpture, a replica of the Arlington Marine Corps War Memorial honoring fallen Marines since 1775, suffered the loss of one Marine’s head, gouges to figures, and bayonet damage estimated in the hundreds of thousands. Soriano, a Mexican national whose DACA status expired in August 2026, faces felony charges including destruction of property and injury to a monument, and is held without bond.
Many expressed outrage online, noting three flag-raisers never returned from the battle that claimed nearly 7,000 American lives, while authorities have not released a motive.
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