2 Bulgarians Referred to Prosecutors over Hiroshima Peace Park Football Graffiti

Police referred two Bulgarian men to prosecutors Tuesday for allegedly spraying graffiti on stone benches and other property at the memorial park in Hiroshima dedicated to the victims of the 1945 U.S. atomic bombing of the city, reports Japan Today. 

The two men, who visited Japan as technical staff of Bulgaria's national opera, are suspected of spraying graffiti, including messages supporting a Bulgarian football club written in Cyrillic, at five locations between the late night of Oct 14 and early hours of Oct 15.

The 26-year-old and 41-year-old men have admitted to the allegations, saying they wanted to leave something to mark their visit to Hiroshima. The two had been drinking alcohol at the time, according to the police.

The opera company, which was on a tour of Japan, was performing in Iwakuni in Yamaguchi Prefecture, about 40 kilometers away from the Peace Memorial Park, on the evening of Oct 14.

Bulgaria's Foreign Ministry has condemned the acts of vandalism and officially apologized to Japan.

The two men have been fired from the opera company over the incident, according to Bulgarian media.