Illegal Immigrant Vandal Of WW2 Memorial Granted Bail

An illegal immigrant charged with defacing a World War II memorial is now out on bail.

Miguel Alonso Maldanado Soriano, a man accused of decapitating the Quantico Iwo Jima memorial was granted a $2,500 bail on Monday by Prince William County Circuit Court Chief Judge Petula Metzler, according to CBS 6 News. Maldanado Soriano had an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detainer lodged against him.

ICE and the Prince William County Circuit Court did not immediately respond for comment.

Maldonado Soriano used a sledgehammer to decapitate one of the statues in the memorial and damage the face of another on the evening of Oct. 21. Officers caught him in the act, according to the outlet.

The damage is estimated to cost hundreds of thousands of dollars, Virginia police told CBS 6.

The perpetrator was charged with felony destruction of property, trespassing with intent to damage property and felony injury to a monument, the outlet reported. The Prince William County Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office argued that he should be held without bail, while Maldonado Soriano’s attorney argued he should be released on bond.

Intentional destruction or injury to property, including qualifying veterans’ monuments, is a Class 6 felony when damage reaches $1,000 in the state of Virginia. A Class 6 felony carries one to five years’ imprisonment, or discretionary jail time of up to 12 months and/or a $2,500 fine, according to Virginia law. It is still unclear why or when an ICE detainer was lodged.