‘A Disgrace’: Trump Reacts to Sledgehammer Attack on Iwo Jima Memorial

President Donald Trump called the sledgehammer attack on an Iwo Jima statue near Marine Corps Base Quantico a “disgrace” after police arrested a man accused of knocking the head off one of the figures. Trump made the remarks when a reporter asked what his message was to someone who disrespects a memorial honoring fallen Marines and what should happen to the person responsible. “What he did to that beautiful memorial was terrible. I guess he comes from Mexico,” Trump said. “He came in through the border of Biden, the open border of Biden and we nabbed him.” “But what he did to that beautiful memorial, very important memorial, was a disgrace,” he added. Trump did not specify what punishment he believed the suspect should receive. Prince William County police identified the suspect as Miguel Alonso Maldonado Soriano, 27, of Stafford, Virginia. Officers responded to a report of property destruction near Richmond Highway and Fuller Road in Quantico at approximately 10:13 p.m. Wednesday, October 21. Police said they arrived to find him striking the statue with a sledgehammer. Officers detained Maldonado Soriano without incident. The damage included the removal of one figure’s head, along with other damage to the sculpture. Police estimated the losses at hundreds of thousands of dollars. He faces charges of felony destruction of property, trespass with intent to damage property, and felony injury to a monument. The department’s October 22 report listed him as being held without bond, with a court date pending. The report did not identify a motive. Maldonado Soriano entered the United States illegally in December 1999. He received Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals status under the Obama administration in 2014 and that protection was extended under the Biden administration in 2024. His DACA protection ended under the Trump administration this year.