Former Olympian denies vandalising Washington Reflecting Pool after arrest

Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Saturday that US Park Police had "arrested multiple individuals for vandalizing our Nations magnificent Reflecting Pool". "Who would do such a thing? These are very serious crimes having to do with the destruction of National Monuments," he continued, adding that "work will begin immediately on its repair". He also shared an article about Hearn's arrest. US Park Police did not reply to request for comment. Hearn told BBC News on Saturday that he "didn't destroy, rip, tear, peel, or remove any part" of the paint. "The condition of any part of the reflecting pool didn't change," he insisted. "It wasn't affected. It was the same before I got there as when I walked away from it." He called his arrest an "arbitrary, capricious prosecution". The champion canoeist is now facing a misdemeanour charge of destruction of government property. A video posted to social media of Hearn's arrest shows him standing near a water-pumping hose that is lying across a footpath and speaking to a woman, before walking away and picking up his bike. He is then approached by two National Guard troops, and the video shows that he was later placed in handcuffs, with US Park Police also standing around. The post includes a suggestion that he had grabbed the hose from one of the park workers, though Hearn denied this when speaking with the Washington Post and said it was possible that his bike tyre had moved it.