4/12/16 - Fresno County Sheriff’s property crimes detectives have returned a cement American Bald Eagle statue to its owners.
On the night of April 9th, deputies received a call from the Fresno Police Department saying a man contacted them wanting to return the stolen statue. Deputies responded to a home near McKinley and Cedar in Fresno. They spoke with the man and found the statue in the bed of his pickup truck. He claims a friend of his recently bought it off two men for $50, but the details of his story were very vague. The man says the next day he found out the statue was a stolen item, so he called Fresno Police to arrange having it returned to its rightful owners. The statue is in similar same shape to what it was when it was taken from the victims. It had a broken beak and damaged claws, however, it appears the people who took it tried repairing it, sanding down some of the pieces.
The man does not face any criminal charges because there is no definitive evidence to show he was involved in the theft.
4/5/16 - Fresno County Sheriff’s property crimes detectives are searching for the suspect(s) who stole a cement American Bald Eagle statue from the driveway of a Clovis home.
The house is located on the 2800 block of E. Alluvial Avenue. The theft occurred sometime between 7:00 pm on March 27th, 2016 and 4:00 am on March 28th, 2016.
The owners are a couple in their 80s who have lived at the home for more than 50 years. The gentleman is a former Marine who served in the Korean War. He and his wife are extremely patriotic and purchased the four foot tall, 400 lb. statue a year ago to display next to their American flag. Since November 2015, the statue has been vandalized several times. People have damaged the bird’s claws and beak, but were never able to take it until recently. The statue is very unique. In fact, the beak is currently broken and the owner temporarily fixed it using aluminum foil, so that would make it even more recognizable if someone were to find it. The statue is valued at $350, but the owners say the symbol of freedom it represents is what is most important to them and why they desperately want it back.
Anyone with additional information on this case is asked to please contact Detective Tim Juarez at (559) 600-8061 or Crime Stoppers at (559) 498-STOP (7867). All tips will remain anonymous and you may be eligible for a cash reward.
