A Finnish tourist faces up to seven years in prison for vandalising one of the ancient Moai statues on Easter Island.
A resident spotted the 25-year-old breaking off part of an ear from the statue in order to take it home as a souvenir. The Finn had only been on the remote island a day before defacing the Moai statue on Sunday, and is now in police custody.
"He says he planned to take it away as a souvenir," a local police official told Reuters. "He could face prison ... but it is more likely he will face a fine big enough to fix the damage."
Easter Island is a UNESCO world heritage site. The Moai monoliths were carved by Polynesian colonizers out of the island's volcanic rock from as early as the 10th century, according to UNESCO. Hundreds of these sculptures are scattered over the tiny island.
