Vandals Target National Mall with Razor Cuts, Blood Message

A wave of vandalism has struck the National Mall in Washington, D.C., with attackers using razor blades to slash over 300 feet of the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool’s liner, scrawling a blood-written message on the Washington Monument, and etching the anti-Trump slogan “8647” into the grass — prompting an FBI investigation and raising urgent questions about security at America’s most hallowed public spaces.

According to Fox News, the Interior Department confirmed that the first known incident occurred on June 9, when the Reflecting Pool’s newly installed liner was cut with “razor-blade-like slashes” along its southern middle section. The damage totaled over 300 feet, with some sections measuring 6 to 15 inches cut out entirely. Approximately 70 fence post tops were also thrown into the water.

A Disturbing Pattern Emerges

Interior Department communication director Katie Martin told Fox News Digital that officials initially withheld news of the June 9 attack to avoid inspiring copycats. “At the time of the June 9 incident, the vandalism was under investigation and believed to be isolated,” Martin said. “So as not to encourage deranged individuals, we did not announce what we hoped to be an isolated incident.”

But the strategy failed. In the weeks that followed, multiple “8647” markings appeared on the Mall grounds — “86” being restaurant slang for removing or refusing service, and “47” referring to President Donald Trump as the 47th president. An individual also used their own blood to write “I’ve come” on the Washington Monument, according to a police report reviewed by Fox News.

The Associated Press reported that Frank Lands, Deputy Director of Operations for the National Park Service, confirmed in a court filing that the liner was “cut with a sharp knife or razor.” The filing was made as part of a lawsuit by a nonprofit seeking to halt the Trump administration’s renovation of the pool.

Arrests and Denials

Five people have been arrested on vandalism charges for the pool, while five additional individuals received federal citations. A total of 14 police reports have been filed for vandalism against the pool, according to administration officials.

Among those arrested was David Hearn, a three-time U.S. Olympic canoeist, who was charged on June 20 with misdemeanor destruction of government property. According to Fox News, Hearn denied the allegations, stating that he merely reached into the water to feel a detached piece of the liner. “I didn’t vandalize anything,” Hearn said. “I didn’t destroy or break or peel anything. By the time I realized what was going on, I was being put in handcuffs.”

The Renovation Controversy

The vandalism has unfolded against the backdrop of President Trump’s ambitious and controversial renovation of the Reflecting Pool. Originally projected at $1.8 million, the cost has ballooned to approximately $14.2 to $16 million. A no-bid contract was awarded to Atlantic Industrial Coatings, a Virginia-based company that had previously done work at one of Trump’s golf clubs, while a separate $1.7 million no-bid contract for a filtration system went to John J. Cafaro, a Trump donor and neighbor of Mar-a-Lago.

Within days of the renovation’s completion, the pool turned green due to algae — a phenomenon experts call “new pond syndrome,” common in shallow, stagnant summer water. Large flakes of the blue coating also began peeling and floating on the surface.

Competing Narratives

The administration has blamed the pool’s problems squarely on vandals. President Trump claimed on Truth Social that attackers “cut it up good” and suggested someone may have poured fertilizer into the water to create the algae. White House spokesperson Taylor Rogers said fencing around the pool was being installed earlier than planned “with the increase in vandalism by leftist activists.”

However, skeptics have raised questions. The New York Times reported that internal government records showed two cuts in foam sections between expansion joints, but these were not directly related to the peeling blue coating or the algae. Washington Post reporters visited the pool and found no evidence of the 250-to-350-foot gash Trump described. When pressed by CBS News for photographic evidence, Trump responded: “Yeah, at the right time you’ll see it. You’ll see it in court.”

What’s Next

The administration has accelerated fencing installation around the Reflecting Pool ahead of the July 4 celebrations, which mark the nation’s 250th birthday. The National Park Service plans to drain the pool after Independence Day to conduct repairs. Meanwhile, the FBI investigation continues, and questions remain about whether the administration will release the photographic evidence Trump has promised. The broader “sabotage trend” — which also includes the cutting of fuel lines at the Great American State Fair — has left federal authorities on heightened alert as the nation’s capital prepares for its biggest celebration in a generation.