A person in their 70s was caught by the police for graffiti on the wall of Gyeongbokgung Palace's Gwanghwamun.
On the 11th, the Korea Heritage Service noted that at about 8:10 a.m., an on-site worker discovered a person surnamed Kim (79) graffitiing on the stonework of Gwanghwamun and reported it to the situation room. The on-site worker immediately intervened to stop Mr. Kim's graffiti act, and he was promptly handed over to the police.
Mr. Kim was confirmed to have written with a black marker on the stone platform below Gwanghwamun, 'A letter to the people and the world, President Trump~.' The reason and background for the writing have not been determined.
The Korea Heritage Service is planning to begin the graffiti removal work with experts in artifact science and conservation from the National Palace Museum of Korea on the same day.
Furthermore, they stated that they will respond strictly to the act of vandalism against Gyeongbokgung Palace, the legal palace of the Joseon Dynasty and a representative cultural heritage of Korea.
A representative from the Korea Heritage Service said, 'According to the law on the preservation and utilization of cultural heritage, we can issue a restoration order to the person who committed the graffiti act and may charge the expenses necessary for the restoration.'
Previously, Gyeongbokgung Palace had been contaminated due to spray graffiti in 2023. At that time, a teenager had sprayed graffiti on the Yeongchummun gate of Gyeongbokgung Palace and the side gate near the National Palace Museum, resulting in approximately 131 million won being spent on restoration work.