Former Olympian is arrested for allegedly vandalizing Reflecting Pool… but he claims he merely touched it

A three-time Olympic champion kayaker was arrested for allegedly damaging President Donald Trump’s shiny new Reflecting Pool in Washington, D.C., but the athlete claimed he only touched it.

David Hearn was arrested Friday by Park Police officers on a misdemeanor charge of destruction of government property after they said he touched the lining of the Reflecting Pool at the Lincoln Memorial. Washington Post reported.

He told the outlet that while passing the monument on a 32-mile bike ride, he noticed the lining had been ripped off and reached out to feel it.

‘I didn’t damage anything. I didn’t destroy, break or rob anything. “I was being handcuffed when I realized what was happening,” Hearn said.

The Reflecting Pool has been a sore point for the Trump administration as grand plans to turn the water ‘American Blue’ have been thwarted by persistent green algae.

News of Hearn’s arrest was first shared by online journalist Emily Miller, with video footage appearing to show multiple officers gathering around the former Olympian in full cycling gear.

Miller claimed that Hearn ‘grabbed the hose that female National Park Service workers were using to remove moss.’

Since Trump unveiled the sparkling new pool, workers have been seen trying to remove algae almost every day.

The Reflecting Pool at the Lincoln Memorial is plagued by green algae despite a major restoration project

Hearn denied the allegations to the Washington Post and said he did not harm the Reflecting Pool

Hear’s interactions with police and the National Guard appeared cordial. He asked the officers what he was being held for and if he was free to go.

But another clip revealed Hearn had his hands cuffed behind his back as several police officers gathered around him.

Hearn is from Bethesda, Maryland, and graduated from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, according to his Olympic profile.

He was an accomplished kayaker and competed in the sport competitively from the late 1970s to the early 2000s.

Hear’s first Olympics was in Barcelona in 1992, and he returned to the games in Atlanta four years later. He also competed in Sydney in 2000.

He won two gold and five silver medals. Hearn also won six consecutive world championship medals.

His sister, Catherine, has run the family business canoeing since she competed for the United States and won the world championship in 1979.

Although Donald Trump did not mention Hearn’s name, he did post about the alleged vandalism on Truth Social on Friday evening.

Crews have been seen removing green algae from the Reflecting Pool for weeks

Green algae has thwarted Donald Trump’s plans to beautify D.C. monuments, including cleaning up the Reflecting Pool so it can be used as intended.

Kearn competed as a canoeist on Team USA in the 1992, 1996 and 2000 Olympics. Above is a photo of her competing in the 2000 Olympics in Sydney.

The president said D.C. officials are having “some real problems with vandalism at the beautiful Reflecting Pool,” referencing an incident earlier this week.

“It’s a shame that the Radical Left Crazies, most likely the Dumocats, who spend their lives destroying our country, are free to do so,” Trump wrote.

‘Law Enforcement is actively investigating this situation and we hope to resolve it soon.’

The president also accused ‘light ABC Reporter Jonathan Karl’ of putting his hand in the pool and trying to wipe the water off the surface.

Karl reported ABC News On Thursday, his team found the Reflecting Pool filled with mud and green algae, he added, and the paint job appeared to be disintegrating.

Trump added that 75 percent of the algae has disappeared and the damage from vandalism will be repaired early next week.

The president praised his administration’s efforts to beautify D.C., claiming to have restored 45 monuments and monuments, 28 statues and 22 fountains.

The Daily Mail has reached out to the White House for further comment.

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