Police investigating theft of the 'Angel of Faith' statue in Trenton
TRENTON, N.J. - A statue of St. Michael that stood nearly 15 feet tall has now been downgraded to just a pair of feet.
The "Angel of Faith" statue was stolen last week and the person who stole it, left behind nothing but the statue’s feet on top of a bronze ball.
The statue was put up in 1986 to commemorate a tragic fire at St. Mary’s Cathedral. It matters to the locals of Trenton and city officials and stakeholders want the statue back so badly that there is even a small bounty.
"It’s just disgusting, it really is," said a Trenton resident.
Since the statue had been ripped out of its mount, the most recent image of it may be a photo that a Trenton man took of his wife, Rose, sitting in front of the monument. Rose says that the thief "ought to worry about their mortal soul."
"It’s not worth it on the simple fact that hey, God runs the world. Not the scrapyard," said Rose’s husband. "The only thing they had to do was get on their hands and knees and pray to God. God would've made things better."
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Trenton police Director Steve Wilson says that he believes the theft was addict-driven, with the thought that the thief wanted to scrap the statue for money. He said he notified local scrappers to keep an eye out, but he fears that the statue may have already been melted down.
"Unfortunately if we don't get recovery right away, the odds of recovering the statue whole are lessened. But we do have some persons of interest identified, and we are working diligently in that regard," Wilson said
The statue could not have been easily moved, given its size, according to Trenton Mayor Reed Gusciora. He says he believes the crime was planned and would’ve required a truck to move it.
"We're checking to see if there are any molds leftover. It was built or formed in 1986, so I don't know if it's still there, but we're going to try to replace it if we can. We would have to raise a substantial amount of money," said Mayor Gusciora.
With the general assumption that the statue could not be scrapped for a lot of money, "NJ Weedman," Ed Forchion says that he will pay for the statue’s safe return in newly-legal-in-New-Jersey, recreational marijuana.
"They are not going to get $400 or $500 if they go to the recycle place. So, you’ve got to give them more… 2 ounces of weed," Forchion said.
Forchion encouraged the thief to bring the statue back to his "joint" and said he will make sure that it is safely returned.