’Elizabeth Bridge Hero’ Questioned by Police Says He Would Remove LGBT Flags Again
The 58-year-old man who threw Pride rainbow flags into the Danube from a bridge in central Budapest said he did it for the future of Hungarian children.
Pride flags on the Elizabeth Bridge in Budapest, Hungary, ahead of the 2026 Budapest Pride parade
@GoscheUff on X, June 22, 2026
The 58-year-old man who threw Pride rainbow flags into the Danube from a bridge in central Budapest said he did it for the future of Hungarian children.
Hungarian media report that the Central Budapest Police Department said in a statement on Tuesday, June 23rd they had identified the man—dubbed ‘the Elizabeth Bridge hero’ by right-wing social media commentators—who had thrown into the Danube the Pride flags displayed on a bridge in central Budapest over the weekend.
The suspect, a 58-year-old man, was arrested at his home in the evening hours of Monday June 22nd. Following his arrest, he was taken to the police station and questioned as a suspect on reasonable suspicion of the crime of vandalism.
The man admitted to committing the crime, and was released from custody for the duration of the investigation.
The man was interviewed by the right-wing Kárpátmedence news site, saying he was waiting for the police at the gate of his country house on Monday evening. He said he was proud of what he did and would do it again, stating “I did not ask for a lawyer during the police interrogation. I did not need one because I only did what my personal convictions dictated,” adding
I decided that for the sake of my children and our children’s future, I would go into the city and take down those flags.
The man explained that Hungary is a Christian state with a thousand-year history, and only the Hungarian national flag should be flown from public spaces. “I am not bothered by gays, but the sight of their love should not be forced on me or anyone else,” he said.
