A man has been charged for stealing a Jackie Robinson statue to sell for scrap metal, Kansas police say.
Ricky Alderete was charged on Monday for the theft of the Jackie Robinson statue, per a Wichita Police Department Facebook announcement. On Jan. 25, police received reports that the statue was cut off at the ankles. It was found days later smoking in a trash can.
Alderete, 45, was first taken into custody at the start of the month on a warrant for his arrest in an unrelated kidnapping case, reports the Associated Press.
Alderete was charged with four counts — including felony theft (value over $25,000) and aggravated criminal damage to property, per the WPD. He was additionally charged with two more counts — identity theft and making false information — stemming from a 2022 pawn ticket incident. He is being held on $150,000 bond, according to AP .
During a Tuesday press conference, WPD Chief Joe Sullivan said Alderete’s arrest was “only the first arrest,” and more are expected to come. He added that the investigation is ongoing and the department has interviewed over 100 people.
The WPD said there has “not [been] any evidence indicating that this was a hate-motivated crime, instead, we believe this theft was motivated by the financial gain of scrapping common metal.”
“Our detectives remain committed to gathering information to identify and charge all individuals involved in the theft and destruction of the Jackie Robinson statue,” read the WPD statement.
On Jan. 25, the WPD received a call about the theft at McAdams Park. The Property Crimes investigators then began interviewing suspects and searching for video evidence. Three days later, “the Wichita Police Department Field Community Response Team located the suspect vehicle used in the theft, unoccupied, at an apartment complex in Wichita,” per the WPD Facebook statement.
Then, on Jan. 30, the Wichita Fire Department discovered remnants of the statue burned beyond repair when they responded to a reported trash can fire at a park.
The Jackie Robinson statue formerly stood at a youth baseball field and was owned and erected by the League 42 Foundation, a nonprofit youth baseball league founded in honor of Robinson.
On Jan. 31, League 42 created a GoFundMe account for a replacement. The original statue was built by artist John Parsons, who has since died. “Fortunately, the mold from his work is still viable, and the statue that reappears at McAdams Park will be the work of John Parsons,” said League 42 director Bob Lutz.
The fundraiser, which closed on Feb. 5, raised over $190,000.
However, Major League Baseball and its 30 clubs announced it will replace the league’s statue.
The remaining donations will be distributed towards the “organization and operations for our 600-plus kids, 46 teams, and our four education programs that are offered free of charge,” per the GoFundMe update from Lutz.