A tourist filmed carving names into the wall of Rome’s ancient Colosseum last week has been identified as a fitness trainer living in Britain. The identification was made using photographic comparisons, said Italian police.

They did not identify the suspect, saying only that the man and his girlfriend were “a couple who are resident in England”.‌

However, he was named by the Daily Telegraph as Ivan Dimitrov, a 27-year-old fitness instructor and delivery driver who is originally from Bulgaria and lives in Bristol.

He was filmed by an onlooker etching his and his girlfriend’s name into a wall of the 2,000-year-old monument last Friday. He used a key to write “Ivan + Hayley 23”.

An angry bystander who filmed the incident asked: “Are you serious, man?” The video, titled: “A*****e tourist carves name in Colosseum in Rome,” was uploaded to YouTube and went viral.

Italian police will send a note to the suspect’s home in England to inform him that he is under investigation, according to Il Messaggero, though it is unclear what will happen next.

It was reported that the man could face a fine of up to €15,000 (£12,850) and a prison sentence of up to five years if convicted of defacing the historical monument.

Rome’s Colosseum is a Unesco world heritage site where gladiators fought with one another and with wild animals including lions, leopards, bulls and ostriches. Its construction began under the reign of the emperor Vespasian in the first century AD.

The Italian culture minister Gennaro Sangiuliano thanked the police for identifying the alleged suspect of the “uncivilised and absurd act committed at the Colosseum”.

“It was an act that offended those around the world who appreciate the value of archaeology, monuments and history,” he said. “Now I hope justice will take its course by rigorously applying the laws.”

The minister said that the government was considering a law that would impose stringent punishment on those found guilty of defacing or damaging the country’s historical and cultural heritage sites.

“Those who cause damage will pay,” he said.

In 2014, a Russian tourist was fined €20,000 (£17,000) for engraving a “K” on a wall at the site, and given a suspended four-year jail sentence.

Italian tourism lobby Federturismo, backed by statistics bureau ISTAT, has said 2023 is shaping up as a record for visitors to Italy, surpassing even pre-pandemic levels that hit a high in 2019.

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