Egyptian police have said they arrested a tour guide on suspicion of drawing on an ancient pyramid near Cairo while making an explanation to foreign tourists.
A video on social media showed drawings purportedly sketched by the guide on the outer casing of the pyramid, sparking online rage and accusations of defacing an antiquity.
In the video, the male guide is being caught in the act and confronted.
The Egyptian news portal Egypt Today reported that the markings were drawn on the Pyramid of Unas at the Saqqara necropolis in Giza.
The Fifth Dynasty Pyramid of Unas is the first example of funerary texts known as Pyramid Texts.
The guide was arrested after a local antiquity inspector had filed a report to police, accusing the guide of distorting the monument while explaining to a group of tourists, the Egyptian Interior Ministry said in a statement earlier this week.
In questioning, the guide admitted to the act, the statement added.
The drawings were later removed by relevant authorities.
If convicted, he could face at least one year in prison and a fine of up to 500,000 Egyptian pounds (approximately RM40,000).
In recent years, Egypt has vigorously sought to boost its tourism industry, a main source of its national income.
In November, the long-awaited Grand Egyptian Museum opened at a lavish ceremony and has since drawn large numbers of local and foreign visitors.
The site, near the Giza Pyramids, is deemed the world's largest museum dedicated to the ancient Egyptian civilization. – dpa
