Shofuso Japanese House And Garden Reopens After Vandals Broke In And Vandalized Mural
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The Shofuso Japanese House and Garden in Fairmount Park reopens for the first time since vandals broke in Wednesday night and damaged a mural on-site. Shofuso's executive director says the damage wasn't costly as they first feared, but the wooden doors and the drainage are intricate works of art that need to be inspected.
Shofuso's serene setting was disturbed Wednesday night after vandals broke into the traditional Japanese House, knocking over objects and scratching and poking holes in a mural.
Japan America Society of Greater Philly's Kazumi Teune, who oversees the site, says to her relief, the mural's original artist told her he'll be able to fix the damage
"Happy! Sorry whatever happened, but I'm happier now than yesterday."
A momentum of back-to-back phone calls with everyone, from community leaders to the Japanese government, checked in to see if she and her staff are okay.
The site reopened after shutting down Thursday to clean up the mess.
While attending a separate event to mark Immigrant Heritage Month, Mayor Jim Kenney promised whoever's responsible will be sent to jail.
"We're going to do our best to bring these idiots to justice and I apologize to the Japanese people and the Japanese government for this happening in Philadelphia, but we'll do our best to bring them in," Kenney said.
Shofuso representatives tell Eyewitness News they waited several hours for police to arrive and take a report, which was brought up to Kenney.
"I understand that this is a terrible thing to happen but it wasn't someone's life in danger," Kenney said. "We have to prioritize how we respond to things."
Teune is prioritizing a more optimistic view because the damage can be repaired. She hopes this negative incident will highlight the historic, positive bond between Philadelphia and Japan.
"This instance is totally sad news, but I think in a way, it's kind of kick off another momentum to gather collectively," Teune said.
Anyone with information is asked to call the police.
