A woman has been taken into custody and charged with two federal felonies following the vandalism of the World War II Memorial in Washington, according to U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro.
The charges could bring a prison sentence of up to 10 years.
Pirro announced Friday that Melissa Farris was charged with depredation against property of the United States and destruction of veterans’ memorials.
Both counts stem from the damage discovered Thursday at the prominent memorial on the National Mall.
The World War II Memorial was covered with soap suds and splattered with red and green paint.
The words “Clean hands Dirty $” were painted across one surface while bubbly soap caused the memorial fountain to overflow.
Images posted by Pirro on the social media platform X appeared to show a woman holding a can near the red paint.
Pirro did not identify the source of those photographs or provide additional information about how authorities located Farris.
Reuters reported that it could not immediately verify the images. Farris also could not immediately be reached for comment, and Pirro’s office did not respond to a request seeking further details about the case.
The vandalism quickly drew outrage because the memorial honors the Americans who served and died during World War II.
Defacing that ground is not some harmless prank, regardless of whatever muddled political message the graffiti was supposed to convey.
Federal officials vowed to identify whoever was responsible after the damage became public.
Pirro’s announcement indicates investigators moved quickly, although the charges remain allegations and will have to be proven in court.
President Donald Trump condemned the vandalism and appeared to connect it with recent damage involving the Reflecting Pool.
He described the attack on the World War II Memorial as an insult to Americans who sacrificed their lives during the conflict.
“First the Reflecting Pool, now this,” Trump wrote on social media Friday. “We are on their trail! Where do these animals come from???”
Trump’s response followed an earlier controversy involving Pirro’s decision to drop charges against four people accused of vandalizing the Reflecting Pool.
The pool had undergone renovations overseen by the Trump administration before its condition began to deteriorate.
Problems at the Reflecting Pool reportedly included a peeling liner and blooms of algae.
Pirro attributed the damage to faulty installation rather than vandalism and dropped the cases against the four accused individuals.
Trump was plainly dissatisfied with that decision and said Pirro had “folded like an umbrella.”
The new memorial case now places her office under added scrutiny as federal prosecutors move ahead with two serious felony counts.
Unlike the dispute over the Reflecting Pool, the World War II Memorial incident included visible graffiti and paint across federal property dedicated to the nation’s veterans. That evidence has intensified public anger and increased pressure for firm consequences.
The memorial sits between the Lincoln Memorial and the Washington Monument and commemorates the service of 16 million members of the United States Armed Forces during World War II. It also honors the more than 400,000 Americans who died during that global struggle.
Damage to such a site strikes beyond the cost of cleaning paint or removing soap from a fountain.
It represents contempt for the memory of a generation that fought across Europe and the Pacific so later generations could enjoy the freedoms vandals often take for granted.
Pirro has not disclosed whether investigators believe anyone else participated or whether authorities have determined a motive.
No details were released about when Farris was arrested, where she was taken into custody, or when she would make her first court appearance.
The prosecution will now test whether federal law can deliver meaningful accountability for an alleged attack on one of the nation’s most solemn military memorials.
Americans will be watching closely, especially after Trump made clear that treating attacks on national landmarks like routine mischief is no longer acceptable.
