American tourist arrested for allegedly defacing Tokyo's Meiji Jingu Shrine

An American man has been arrested for allegedly carving letters into a torii gate at a Meiji Jingu Shrine in Japan's Tokyo.

Tokyo Metropolitan Police alleged that the 65-year-old man used his fingernails to carve five letters into the pillar of a torii gate at the popular tourist spot.

The suspect, Steve Lee Hayes, was arrested on Wednesday (Nov 13) on charges of property damage, a Tokyo Metropolitan Police spokesperson told CNN.

The man carved five letters, believed to be the tourist's family name into a gate pillar, public broadcaster NHK reported.

Police identified the suspect by reviewing security camera footage and launched an investigation.

The suspect and his family arrived in Japan for sightseeing on Monday (Nov 11).

A spokesperson confirmed that the US Embassy staff have visited Hayes and are providing consular assistance. However, they declined to give further details due to privacy concerns.

The suspect now faces up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 300,000 yen ($1,918) for the alleged vandalism.

Japan has been witnessing a surge in visitors from across the world. However, it becomes a problem as the country also struggles with misbehaving visitors.

Watch |Japan: Shigeru Ishiba To Continue As Prime Minister

Similar incidents

In September, Japan's local police told CNN that a 61-year-old Austrian man was arrested for having sex on the grounds of a shrine in Kesennuma, a small coastal town about 310 miles north of Tokyo. He then faced charges of disrespecting a place of worship.

Later in October, a Chile-based fitness influencer faces online backlash for posting a clip of herself doing pull-up exercises on a red gate at a different Japanese shrine.

The woman had 139,000 followers on Instagram. She later posted an apology video on the social media platform, saying "it “wasn’t my intention to show disrespect”.

(With inputs from agencies)