In fact, the nationality of the vandals is unknown. No other information about them is disclosed.
Pro-Russian sources are massively distributing a video of an incident in the museum. A man, clearly intending to take a photo, sits on a crystal-encrusted chair and breaks it, after which he immediately runs away with his companion. Proponents note that the offenders have already been detained, and that they turned out to be «Ukrainian refugees». Some publications even claim that the couple is trying to use their nationality to avoid responsibility for their actions.
However, this is yet another attempt by Russian propaganda to denigrate Ukrainian refugees. It is currently unknown who exactly is behind the incident, and the perpetrators have not yet been detained. The incident took place back in April in a museum in Verona: visitors ignored warnings and decided to sit on the «Van Gogh chair»: a fragile sculpture by Italian artist Nicola Bolla covered in Swarovski crystals. «What you just saw would be funny if, unfortunately, it hadn’t happened in reality. This is the worst nightmare for any museum,» commented Palazzo Maffei director Vanessa Carlon. The sculpture was reconstructed. Museum staff reported the incident to the police, and the video was published to urge tourists to treat art with respect and follow the rules of the museums they visit.
This is not the first time that propagandists have attributed immoral or even criminal actions of citizens of other countries to Ukrainian immigrants. We refuted similar misinformation in the article Fake: Ukrainian Refugee Shot at a Christian Icon in Zurich. Often Russians spread even completely made up stories, such as the news that Ukrainian refugees allegedly desecrated a Berlin mosque.
