The National Park Service said in a sworn declaration that the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool liner was cut with a sharp knife or razor on June 9, 2026.
Frank Lands, deputy director for operations for the National Park Service, said in the filing, "On June 9, 2026, after the rehabilitation project was substantially complete, the U.S. Park Police responded to an NPS report of damage to the reflecting pool, including a caulk over the foam sealant that was cut with a sharp knife or razor and destruction of delaminating surface material," Lands said.
Lands wrote that "approximately 70 fence post tops were thrown into the pool."
In the filing Lands said he has personal knowledge of the facts stated and is willing to testify in court, and that he assumed his current role in 2023.
The declaration was filed in the Cultural Landscape Foundation's lawsuit against the Interior Department over the president's Reflecting Pool paint job, and Lands' statement is the first public record testifying to intentional damage after President Donald Trump blamed vandals, the filing said.
Lands said the park service plans to begin draining and repairing the pool after the Independence Day festivities rather than before.
U.S. Park Police said at least five people have been arrested in connection with alleged vandalism at the Reflecting Pool and five additional people were issued federal citations.
U.S. Park Police posted a bulletin seeking help identifying a person wanted in a "destruction of government property" investigation and included a video that shows a person reaching into the Reflecting Pool and appearing to pull something from the water; the agency said the incident allegedly occurred at 3:36 p.m. ET on Friday, June 19, and asked anyone with information to contact its tip line.
President Donald Trump has repeatedly blamed vandals, saying, "The Reflecting Pool that you've heard so much about, which is so incredible, it's been gruesomely vandalized by thugs, bad people, but soon will be looking as beautiful as it looked just two weeks ago," and adding that "the vandals got to it, they've largely been caught and are being prosecuted."
Trump has said the pool will be drained again for "permanent repair" around the Fourth of July and that evidence of damage would be shown in court: "Yeah, at the right time you'll see it," he said. Trump also said on Tuesday that six people had been arrested.
The water has also been plagued by a resurgence of algae, the filing said.
Details of the evidence have not been released, and the White House has yet to provide evidence showing the alleged vandalism, the Park Police bulletin and the filing said.
The rehabilitation project has been described in reporting as a $14.7 million sealant job, and the administration has described the renovation as $16 million.