Iwo Jima monument vandalized near Quantico Marine Base

A 27-year-old man, Miguel Alonso Maldonado Soriano, was arrested after allegedly attacking a limestone Iwo Jima monument near Marine Corps Base Quantico in Virginia with a sledgehammer. Prince William County police reported that the suspect was caught in the act of damaging the sculpture, which depicts the iconic World War II flag-raising scene.

The vandalism caused extensive damage estimated to cost hundreds of thousands of dollars. One Marine figure was decapitated, another sustained gouges to its face and helmet, and a third figure suffered damage to a stone bayonet. The monument is a smaller replica of the Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington, originally sculpted by Felix de Weldon.

Maldonado Soriano faces multiple charges, including felony destruction of property, felony injury to a monument, and trespass with intent to damage property. Federal sources identified the suspect as a Mexican national and former DACA recipient whose legal status expired in August 2026. He is currently being held without bond.