A tourist in Mexico is facing charges after he climbed stairs of one of the New Seven Wonders of the World before furious locals took justice into their own hands by beating the man. 

Bystander footage shows the individual – who authorities have yet to name – scaling the side of the Temple of Kukulcan in Chichén Itzá in Yucatan last week. 

The man was one of two separate visitors filmed climbing the pyramid on Thursday, as approximately 9,000 tourists flocked to the temple – referred to as El Castillo – to observe the spring equinox, according to local outlet Mexico News Daily. 

MEXICO TOURIST WHACKED WITH STICK, HECKLED AFTER ILLEGALLY CLIMBING SACRED MAYAN PYRAMID

“He eluded us, even though we’re keeping watch on the western side of the temple,” a National Guard member told Mexico News Daily. “He ran past us. He’s clearly in good physical condition.”

Video shows one of the men scaling the steps as security guards chased after him. One of the trespassers, a 38-year-old German tourist, reportedly attempted to hide inside the pyramid chamber, but was found by authorities and escorted out of the historic site. 

Mexican National Guard officers and personnel from the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) attempted to shield the man, who was being attacked by the crowd as angry onlookers shouted that he should be “sacrificed” – referring to the human sacrifices that were once carried out at the top of the pyramid by the ancient Mayans, the local paper reported.

AMERICANS CONSIDERING SPRING BREAK VACATION IN MEXICO WARNED OF MURDER SPIKE

People look at the pyramid of Chichen Itza in the southern Mexican state of Yucatan March 21, 2012.  (REUTERS/Victor Ruiz Garcia)

The incident comes as thousands of tourists flock to the Chichén Itzá to witness an event known as the Descent of the Feathered Serpent, a natural phenomenon where the sunlight casts a serpent-shaped shadow along the pyramid’s stairs, during the spring equinox.  

The site hosts a four-day-long program featuring activities for guests to enjoy. However, the events do not include climbing the nearly 1,000-year-old pyramid, which was outlawed in 2006 to protect the structure. 

The two tourists were arrested and face potential fines under Article 55 of the Federal Law on Archaeological, Artistic, and Historical Monuments and Zones of Mexico, according to Mexico News Daily. 

US ISSUES MAJOR TRAVEL ADVISORY FOR MEXICAN BORDER STATE OVER CONCERNS WITH GUN BATTLES, IEDSUS ISSUES MAJOR TRAVEL ADVISORY FOR MEXICAN BORDER STATE OVER CONCERNS WITH GUN BATTLES, IEDS

The Temple of Kukulkan is seen in the archaeological site of Chichen Itza in the southern Mexican state of Yucatan March 21, 2012.  (REUTERS/Victor Ruiz Garcia)

A strikingly similar incident unfolded two years ago when a Polish tourist chose to scale the same pyramid.

The man was filmed running up the sacred temple’s stairs before a bystander whacked him with a stick as authorities placed him under arrest. The man was held in jail for 12 hours and fined 5,000 pesos, according to the Mexico Daily Post. 

Chichén Itzá authorities did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. 

Fox News Digital’s Andrew Mark Miller contributed to this report. 

Critics see the no-confidence vote as part of broader moves to weaken judicial checks on Netanyahu’s government.

Israel’s cabinet has passed a vote of no confidence against Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara, the country’s justice minister has said, in a first step in the removal of yet another vocal critic of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and his far-right government.

The vote on Sunday comes just two days after the government dismissed Ronen Bar, the head of Shin Bet, the country’s internal security agency – a decision later frozen by the Supreme Court.

Baharav-Miara, the country’s most senior legal official, is accused of “inappropriate behaviour” and of “ongoing substantial differences of opinion between the government and the attorney general, which prevents effective collaboration”, according to the prime minister’s office.

The attorney general, who did not attend the cabinet meeting, refuted the claims and accused the government of trying to operate above the law. The vote of no confidence aimed at gaining “limitless power, as part of a wider move to weaken the judicial branch” and to “promote loyalty to the government”, she said in a letter sent to the cabinet ahead of the vote.

The vote does not translate into her dismissal yet. A committee will review the arguments and hold a hearing to consider the case. Should the committee fail to support her removal, the Supreme Court could still block it.

The attempted dismissal of both the Shin Bet chief and the attorney general has attracted thousands of protesters who say the unprecedented moves are a threat to democracy and part of a crackdown on the few remaining voices critical of Netanyahu.

The prime minister, meanwhile, has cited an “ongoing lack of trust” in Bar, who is expected to testify on April 8. Netanyahu has insisted it is up to the government to decide who will head Shin Bet.

Critics say the prime minister moved against Bar due to his criticism of the government over the security failure that allowed Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel, the deadliest day in the country’s history. They also allege that Netanyahu’s ongoing bribery trial is at play.

Shin Bet has investigated Netanyahu’s close associates on suspicion of receiving money linked to Qatar.

Bar said in a letter that his ouster was motivated by a desire to halt the “pursuit of truth” about the events leading up to October 7. Shin Bet this month released a report that acknowledged it should have thwarted the Hamas-led assault while criticising Netanyahu for helping to create the conditions for the attacks.

Netanyahu’s office has dismissed such accusations as “fake news”.