The Mayor of Harbour Grace says he’s overwhelmed by the support the town has received from people upset about the theft of a one-of-a-kind statue stolen from the Spirit of Harbour Grace park near Riverhead early yesterday morning.
The statue depicts world-famous aviation pioneer Amelia Earhart who took off from the local air strip in 1932 on what was the very first solo trans-Atlantic flight by a woman.
(Photo via Conception Bay Museum)
Surveillance images captured the culprits being picked up from the site in a red SUV that speeds up Jamie’s Way toward the Veteran’s Memorial around 2:45 Thursday morning.
Mayor Don Coombs says he’s in regular contact with RCMP, and he’s asking anyone with possible surveillance images or dash cam footage along the Veteran’s Memorial in the minutes following the theft to contact the RCMP, Crime Stoppers or the town.
Coombs says they’re also going over surveillance images dating back several days before the crime searching for clues because they suspect it was well-planned ahead of time.
Coombs says he’s learned that there was no mold for the statue and she’s one-of-a-kind. He fears that the culprits were only interested in melting her down, and he hopes she can be found intact and returned to her rightful place.
(Conception Bay Museum)
He says there’s an alloy in the metal that is like a DNA finger print, so even if the metal is melted down, it can be traced back to the statue.
Coombs says he’s also learned there is a black market for statues like the one stolen this week, but he strongly believes the thieves were only interested in the metal.
In the meantime, the town is working on a reward, the details of which are still being worked out, and he says residents and others have been coming in with donations to build the pot.
