"Employees with the San Jose Department of Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services reported the theft of the Momotaro statue on Oct. 15, according to the San Jose Police Department. Located near the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts, the statue was a gift from Okayama, San Jose's sister city in Japan, and is a "beloved part of our community," the San Jose Office of Cultural Affairs said in a social media post Tuesday."
"This is not the first time public art has been pilfered in San Jose. In 2023, a statue of a warrior riding a horse that symbolizes the sister city relationship between San Jose and Pune, India, was swiped from Guadalupe River Park. The piece was later discovered - mostly intact - by this news organization at a metal scrap yard north of downtown."
A bronze Momotaro statue was cut down and stolen on Oct. 15 near the San Jose Center for the Performing Arts. The statue was a gift from Okayama, San Jose's sister city in Japan, and was described as a beloved part of the community. Pictures show a figure flanked by a dog and a monkey. A detective has been assigned and the investigation is active and ongoing. Past public-art thefts in San Jose include a 2023 warrior-on-horse statue later found at a metal scrap yard and a 2024 600-plus-pound sculpture that was chopped up and sold after theft. Anyone with information can call the San Jose Police non-emergency line at 408-277-8900 and reference case no. 25-288-0623.
Read at The Mercury News
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