Federal officials say the man accused of beheading a Marine on the Iwo Jima statue at Quantico came to the U.S. illegally from Mexico and had lost his DACA protection.
Story Highlights
- Police say they caught a man swinging a sledgehammer at the Iwo Jima statue near Marine Corps Base Quantico on the night of Wednesday, October 21.
- Miguel Alonso Maldonado Soriano, 27, of Stafford, Virginia, faces charges including felony destruction of property and is held without bond.
- On Friday, October 23, the Department of Homeland Security said he is a Mexican national whose DACA protection had expired.
- Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin said, “This criminal will soon face justice.”
- According to reports citing federal sources, his DACA protection was renewed several times, the last time in 2024, and it ran out in August.
Police Report: Arrest in the Middle of the Attack
Prince William County police say officers were sent to the statue shortly after 10 p.m. and found a man “actively damaging the statue with a sledgehammer.” They detained him at the scene without a struggle. Police have not released a motive. No statement from the accused man or his lawyer has been reported.
The statue stands near the entrance to Marine Corps Base Quantico and the National Museum of the Marine Corps in Virginia. It is a smaller copy of the famous Marine Corps War Memorial in Arlington. Both show six Marines raising the American flag on Iwo Jima in February 1945, one of the bloodiest battles of World War II. According to reports, the head was knocked off the figure of Cpl. Harlon Block, one of the flag raisers, and other parts of the statue were damaged too.
The Charges and the Damage
Police charged Maldonado Soriano with felony destruction of property, felony injury to a monument and trespassing with intent to damage property. Police say the damage comes to hundreds of thousands of dollars. He is being held in jail without bond while the case moves through the courts.
These are charges, not a verdict. He has not been convicted of any crime. Museum director Keil Gentry said the statue is a popular spot for military ceremonies. Experts have been called in to plan repairs, and Gentry said the work is likely to be challenging.
Homeland Security Names the Suspect
DHS said Maldonado Soriano entered the country illegally in 1999. In October 2014, he was granted DACA. DACA, short for Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, is a program that shields some people brought to the U.S. as children from being deported and lets them work. It must be renewed every two years.
According to reports citing federal sources, his DACA was renewed several times, the last time in 2024, and it ran out in August when the Trump administration did not renew it. That means he no longer had that protection on the night of the attack.
Mullin spoke bluntly about the case. “This hateful illegal alien attacked a memorial to our brave Marines, decapitating one of the statues with a sledgehammer,” he said. He added, “This criminal will soon face justice.”
Why It Matters
The Iwo Jima flag raising is one of the best-known images in American history. Thousands of Marines died taking the island, and the statue at Quantico stands as a tribute to them at the front door of the Marine Corps.
The case is moving on two tracks. Virginia will handle the charges for the damage to the statue. Federal officials say he was in the country without legal permission. For many Americans, the case is about protecting the memorials to the men who fought for this country.
Sources:
dhs.gov, stripes.com, militarytimes.com, pjmedia.com, washingtontimes.com, us.cnn.com, univision.com, people.com, washingtonexaminer.com
