LONDON: A German man on Saturday "beheaded" Hitler's statue at the famous Madame Tussauds in Berlin shortly after the attraction was opened to visitors amid controversy over installation of the notorious dictator's waxwork in the museum.
The 41-year-old entered the wax museum shortly after its doors opened and rushed to the Hitler figure, scuffling with a guard assigned to protect it and a manager before tearing the head off the life-size statue, police said.
The inclusion of Hitler in the exhibition has aroused controversy in Germany where Nazi symbols are banned and the the Fuhrer was positioned behind a table, which was supposed to prevent visitors posing with the statue - or damaging it.
The man was arrested and is now in custody, Berlin police spokeswoman Uwe Kozelnik said. He claimed he wanted to protest the figure being included in the museum.
Despite protests, the exhibition's organiser said it could hardly depict German history without portraying Hitler and pointed out that the waxwork depicted the military ruler in the hours before his suicide, a defeated figure slumped in his bunker as the Red Army reached Berlin.
"We did surveys while we were planning the exhibition on the street with Berliners and with tourists, and the result was quite clear that Hitler is one of the figures that they want to see," said Madame Tussauds Natalie Ruoss.
"Seeing as we are portraying the history of Germany we could hardly have left him out," she was quoted as saying by BBC. The museum includes other German historical figures like Otto von Bismarck, Karl Marx, Beethoven, Bach and Einstein.
Police said the man is now being investigated for causing damages and bodily harm but that he would probably be released soon.
Berlin is the eighth wax museum for London-based Madame Tussauds known for its lifelike waxworks depicting famous people including several Indian celebrities.
