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Two people have been arrested for allegedly tearing a giant hole through the Great Wall of China with an excavator, likely causing “irreversible” damage — just so they could pass through it while working there.
The damage was found late last month in a section known as the 32nd Great Wall, one of the only surviving sections dating back to the Ming Dynasty from 1368 to 1644, according to state media reports.
Officials believe heavy machinery was used to open a gap in the UNESCO World Heritage Site, damaging it beyond repair, China Daily said.
The investigation led to the arrests of two suspects, a 38-year-old man with the surname Zheng and a 55-year-old woman with the last name Wang, the Shanxi Cultural Relics Bureau said Monday
They were said to be construction workers who’d widened a gap in the wall to create a shortcut to pass through, China Daily said.
Both were charged with destroying a cultural relic, the state media outlet said.
The Shanxi Cultural Relics Bureau also said that it caused “irreversible” damage to the integrity and safety of that portion of the 13,000-mile span.
The entire Great Wall of China was designated a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1987.
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