It's hard to imagine someone surreptitiously making off with something that's 7 feet tall and made of bronze, but it seems that's what has happened in a park located in the Mid-City neighborhood of Carthay Circle.

Last week, residents discovered that the statue honoring a miner that had stood in their small neighborhood park had gone missing. The initial fear of the community was that the statue was snatched for scrapping, since currently there is a national and local trend of metal objects used in plumbing, lighting, or in public art being stolen and sold for a handsome profit. The LA Times quotes Judy Moore, who serves as president of the Carthay Circle Neighborhood Association: "I think someone stole him to have him melted down, [...] I don't want to see him as rain gutters. It just breaks my heart. He was part of neighborhood history."

Those are some ballsy thieves, considering the stature of the statue in question: "The miner stood in plain view, perched on a boulder and holding his gold pan, at the busy intersection of San Vicente and Crescent Heights boulevards." The monument has been there over eighty years, and "was sculpted by Henry Lion in 1924 and 1925, along with a fountain, and commemorated 19th century settlers in California." The statue's estimated weight: A hefty 1,000 pounds, says Moore.

The LAPD are investigating the case. Did you see someone with a statue in their pocket?

Photo of a statue that hasn't been stolen in Pershing Square by Clinton Steeds via Flickr