A beloved UNC-Wilmington mascot has returned home to roost.
The campus police department announced yesterday that the bronze Seahawk statue stolen from outside Warwick Center in July has been located and returned.
Arrest warrants have been issued for three men–Joseph Edward Berry, 21, of Hillsborough; Robert Joseph Touhey, 22, of Ocracoke; and Nicholas Ryan Siano, 19, of Wilmington–on charges of felony larceny and misdemeanor injury to real property.
A UNCW spokesperson said the men do not attend UNCW. Berry and Touhey attend UNC-Greensboro, according to the university’s student directory. And Siano is currently enrolled at Cape Fear Community College, according to a college spokesperson.
According to a release from the university, Crime Stoppers of the Cape Fear received an anonymous tip just one day after UNCW police released footage of the theft.
The tip led to the recovery of the statue in Greensboro, with the cooperation of the UNC-Greensboro Police Department.
On Aug. 20, police released video surveillance footage of the crime in action. The video showed three white males, approximately 18 to 22 years old, removing the statue from its granite base in the early morning hours of July 5.
The same statue was stolen in July 2003 but quickly recovered, according to university archives. The sculpture, created by Joe Orlando, had been similarly ripped from its base. Soon after the incident, a Wilmington resident walked outside her apartment and found the 75-pound statue on the landing.
According to a UNCW spokeswoman, the statue was valued at $70,000 in 2003.
Since this latest remains an open investigation, the UNCW Police Department will release further details when appropriate.
Check back for updates as they become available.
