Two men walked onto a Southern California church property in the middle of the night with a bag and left with nearly an entire $50,000 bronze statue of Jesus, police say.
What remained was difficult to miss: the statue’s two bronze feet, still attached to its base.
The theft happened around 2 a.m. Aug. 30 at Christ Our Savior Catholic Church in Santa Ana. Surveillance footage released as police sought the suspects shows the pair working around the statue before carrying it away.
One of the men pulled an electric cutting tool from the bag, and the two began cutting the statue from its base, according to reporting based on the Santa Ana Police Department’s account. The men then dragged the statue across the church property toward neighboring Segerstrom High School, where police believe a vehicle was waiting.
Left Behind
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The surveillance images show the suspects moving around the statue in the darkness. After the cutting was finished, police say they hauled it toward the edge of the property, loaded it into the waiting vehicle, and drove away.
Photos released after the theft show little of the sculpture remaining above its base. Only the feet were left behind.
The statue depicted Jesus with his hands together in prayer beside John the Baptist, according to KTLA’s report from the church.
Police valued the stolen bronze statue at approximately $50,000.
Another Cut
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It was not the first time thieves with a cutting tool had targeted bronze artwork at the same church this year.
In April, Santa Ana police sought two suspects after an early-morning break-in at Christ Our Savior. In that case, reported CBS News, the suspects damaged wooden fence panels to enter the property before using a cutting tool to remove portions of a bronze statue, according to Telemundo 52.
The church reported thousands of dollars in damage from that incident.
Police have not announced an arrest in the Aug. 30 theft. Anyone with information is being asked to contact Santa Ana Police Detective R. Wilson at 714-245-8551.