Police Investigate Tourists For 'Damaging and Defecating On' Machu Picchu

Six tourists are facing jail after reportedly damaging and defecating in one of the seven new wonders of the world - Machu Picchu.

The group were arrested on Sunday after rangers at the park found them in an area of the Templo del Sol (Sun Temple), which is usually off-limits. Part of the site has reportedly been damaged.

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Cusco regional police chief Wilbert Leyva told local press: "The six tourists are being detained and investigated by the public ministry for the alleged crime against cultural heritage."

The officer said: "A lithic element had a fracture which might have fallen from a wall causing the hole in the ground."

As well as the material damage, the Regional Direction of Culture in Cusco reported that faecal matter was found at the temple, which is being investigated as evidence the tourists defecated on the site.

Police said the group consisted of one French tourist, two from Brazil, two from Argentina and a Chilean, with local media reporting that they were all aged between 20 and 32.

The Head of the Archaeological National Park of Machu Picchu, Jose Bastante, asked the police station where the tourists are arrested to speed up the investigations.

Peruvian law sees those found guilty of damaging cultural heritage given prison penalties of at least four years.

Bastante also announced that this kind of behaviour will be prevented in future, with CCTV cameras due to be installed on the site.

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He confirmed to local media that there are currently six CCTV cameras on the site and two more in the Cultural Centre, however, around 20 more will be installed in strategic points at Machu Picchu.

He said: "The new cameras will be installed in places such as Casa del Guardian, Intipunku, the entrance of Huayna Picchu and even the Puente Ruinas, we want to cover the most amount of places possible."

It's not the first time the historical wonder has been defaced.

In 2014, authorities hit back against a trend that saw tourists strip off and get naked at the sacred temple.

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Four Americans were arrested in March 2014 for taking off their clothes before posing for a photo.

Two separate incidents in the same week saw two Canadians do the same, and two Australians too. All people involved in the three incidents were arrested by Peruvian authorities.

Topics: World News, travel, crime

Amelia Ward

Amelia is a journalist at LADbible. After studying journalism at Liverpool John Moores and Salford Uni (don't ask), she went into PR and then the world of music. After a few years working on festivals and events, she went back to her roots. In her spare time, Amelia likes music, Liverpool FC, and spending good, quality time with her cat, Paul. You can contact Amelia at [email protected].

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