Home › News › Other News
Eagle statue stolen months ago from Ojai shopping center is recovered
Download this story as a podcast!
STORY TOOLS 
More from Other NewsAn eagle statue stolen from Ojai's main shopping arcade at the beginning of the year was recently found glued to a rock above the Ojai Valley, authorities said.
Police are investigating the case but had not determined who stole the 4-foot statue known as the "Early Bird Shopper," or why the thief hauled the 70-pound bronze statue more than a mile and attached it to a rock above the Shelf trail road, sheriff's Sgt. Joe Evans said Wednesday.
"I don't believe there are any real theories out there, but if anyone else has one, we'd like to hear it," Evans said.
With Native American-style clothes, eyes that appear to scan the horizon for bargains and a candy kiss on its head to symbolize the sweetness of living in Ojai, the "Early Bird Shopper" became an icon during the three years it stood outside the city's main shopping center, Ojai Redevelopment Manager Kathy McCann said.
City officials were beginning to discuss the possibility of replacing the bronze statue before a pair of Shelf trail hikers on Sunday spotted the statue glued to a rock about 300 yards up a mountain.
A sheriff's deputy retrieved the statue with the help of the hikers and returned it to Ojai, Evans said.
McCann was excited Tuesday when she came to work and found the bronze eagle sitting in her office, she said. "We're just so thrilled that she didn't get cut up and melted and sold for scrap metal," McCann said.
The statue picked up a few scratches during its flight from Ojai's shopping arcade, but it is otherwise intact. It's being kept in McCann's office until the city can come up with a way to attach it to its base securely enough to deter thieves.
The city paid about $5,800 for the statue in 2005.
Anyone with information about the theft is asked to call Ojai police at 646-1414.
Posted by SF1943 on April 2, 2008 at 5:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)
WOW!!
Posted by DamnSkippy on April 2, 2008 at 5:36 p.m. (Suggest removal)
"With Native American-style clothes, eyes that appear to scan the horizon for bargains and a candy kiss on its head"
Are the sure they want this back? Sounds like they did the city a favor.
(Requires free registration.)
Article discussions on this site are to support community debates of issues related to our stories and editorials.
Discussions should not stray from the subject of the story or editorial.
We do not allow the following:
We reserve the right to delete threads and/or ban users for these or other reasons we deem necessary.
Opinions are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.