A bronze statue of legendary baseball player Jackie Robinson was stolen from outside a stadium in Kansas on Thursday.
The Wichita Police Department made the announcement, saying it is investigating the matter. Authorities also released surveillance camera footage showing someone cutting off the statue's ankles, placing it in the back of a truck and fleeing the scene.
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The stadium, League 42's McAdams Park, was founded in 2013 to allow local children to learn baseball without having to worry about registration fees. Construction managers had received permission from Robinson's family to erect a statue in 2021.
The athlete, who died in 1972, was the first black player in history to play in the major baseball leagues. He played for the Brooklyn Dodgers from 1947 to 1956 and was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 1962.
Quebec has a special relationship with Robinson as he wore the colors of the Montreal Royals, the Dodgers' AAA-level farm club at the time, in 1946.