Venice’s mayor says six young Belgian men were going to spend the night in jail after they dived from a bridge into the lagoon city’s Grand Canal.
Mayor Luigi Brugnaro also tweeted “caught!!!” after police detained the tourists, ages 21 to 23, following the 10-meter leap after dawn Sunday from Constitution Bridge near the parking terminal for cars, which are banned from the historic center.
The mayor said he hoped the “most exemplary punishment possible” would be meted out for the prank. Stiff fines or being banned from Venice are among possible sanctions, although just how high fines might be wasn’t immediately known.
Officials said that police monitoring surveillance camera footage spotted the tourists as they dived.
