Florida police are searching for a town’s beloved rainbow manatee sculpture after it was stolen from a park.
Authorities in Wilton Manors say the sculpture was pinched in Wilton Manors, about three miles from Fort Lauderdale.
Residents there told Local 10 News that they believe the neighborhood’s manatee was nabbed by someone around 1 a.m. on Tuesday. It was on display at Wilton Drive and Northeast 21st Court.
The community commissioned the sculpture to honor former Wilton Manors Mayor Justin Flippen, who suffered a brain aneurysm in 2020 and died.
The statue was painted by Claudia Castillo. She told the outlet the piece’s robbery was “sad because of what it represents to me,” she said. “I did this also for the community and public art is for everyone.”
Manatees, sometimes called sea cows, are an aquatic mammal that can weigh up to 1,000 pounds. and are protected by state and federal laws.
Anyone with information about the robbery is encouraged to call Wilton Manors police.
