According to authorities, a statue of the renowned American baseball player Jackie Robinson was taken from a Kansas park.
The bronze statue, which was located in a Wichita park, was removed in a truck after being broken at the ankles.
Wichita Police released a statement regarding the theft, which occurred overnight on Thursday, saying, “Our community is devastated.”
For any information on the whereabouts of the statue, police are offering a cash reward.
At a press conference on Friday, Wichita Police Chief Joe Sullivan expressed his frustration with “those individuals who had the audacity to take the statute” from a park that is often visited by families and children.
“We should all be offended by this,” Mr. Sullivan stated.
Robinson’s jersey number, League 42, is the name of the youth baseball league located in McAdams Park, where the statue was located.
Notably, the park is renowned for honoring notable African Americans. It was renamed after the city’s first elected black mayor in recent years, and it is named for a former black official in the city.
As the first black player in Major League Baseball, Robinson of the Brooklyn Dodgers made history and opened the door for a number of generations of African American athletes.
Wichita city council member Brandon Johnson stated, “No matter the motivation of those who were involved, they were not only stealing from the community, they’re also stealing from the legacy of work that has been put in by the members of League 42.”
“What’s more, they’re robbing the children.”
Authorities are offering $5,000 to anyone with information on the statue’s location, in addition to $2,500 (£1,970) for any tip that results in an arrest.
According to city officials, the stolen statue is worth over $75,000, but the actual value of what was lost is far higher.
“That is not even close to the value. Jackie Robinson is here. And I’ll just end it there, Troy said.