A statue of baseball legend Jackie Robinson stolen from a Kansas park was found dismantled and burned in a trash can fire Tuesday morning in what authorities called a “disgraceful” act, as the search for the perpetrators continues.

The statue was taken from McAdams Park in Wichita last week. Surveillance video captured individuals entering Jackie Robinson Pavilion around midnight on Thursday, removing the statue and placing it in a pickup truck. They cut off the statue at the ankles, leaving behind only Robinson’s feet, with damages estimated to be around $75,000.

Around 8:38 a.m. local time on Tuesday, the Wichita Fire Department responded to a report of a trash can fire at Garvey Park, according to Wichita police spokesperson Andrew Ford.

After extinguishing the fire, they found what appeared to be pieces of the Robinson statue, “which is not salvageable at this time,” Ford told reporters during a press briefing Tuesday.

The Wichita Fire Department is investigating the arson, while police continue to investigate the theft, Ford said.

  • @Death_Equity
    link
    -109 months ago

    While it is reasonable to jump to racism as the cause, we can’t rule out idiots being idiots.

    • @Snapz
      link
      129 months ago

      What value does this comment have? We also can’t rule out aliens or the ghost of Ty Cobb… But the preponderance of REALITY in the modern world points to the likely motivation here.

      • @Klear
        link
        79 months ago

        Plus racism is people being idiots.

      • @[email protected]
        link
        fedilink
        19 months ago

        Say what you will about Ty Cobb and his evil and malice filled ghost, but he wouldn’t do this.