An axe-wielding man who smashed the state-protected ancestral hall of China’s former president Hu Jintao in a fit of drunkenness last year is facing criminal prosecution.

The man, surnamed Ge, damaged the ancestral site of the Hu clan in the Longchuan scenic area, local evening newspaper Xinan reported, citing an indictment released on Monday by the procuratorate of Jixi county in eastern Anhui province. The news report was later removed.

According to prosecution papers cited by Xinan, a drunken Ge, 49, carried an axe to the ancestral hall at 9 p.m. on Oct. 3 and whacked the door lock to enter the premises.

He then vented his emotions by hacking at other doors of heritage value at the monument. Relics including the entrance doors, wooden frames and the base stone were badly damaged. Repairs were estimated to total around 32,000 yuan (US$4,920), while the base stone was said to cost 300 yuan, the documents were cited as saying.

The Jixi procuratorate alleged that Ge deliberately destroyed the place knowing it was a protected national monument, and recommended slapping a jail term of 10 months and a fine of 3,000 yuan on him.

News reports of the court case were subsequently taken down and could no longer be found on mainland media websites.

The Hu clan’s ancestral hall was first built in the Song dynasty and later extensively renovated in the Ming and Qing dynasties.

In 2013, the former Chinese president Hu and his wife visited the venue and worshiped their ancestors together.

Click here for Chinese version

---------------------------------

Apple Daily’s all-new English Edition is now available on the mobile app: bit.ly/2yMMfQE

To download the latest version,

iOS: bit.ly/AD_iOS

Android: bit.ly/AD_android

Or search Appledaily in App Store or Google Play