A bronze statue of a kneeling soldier was stolen from the Paramount Armed Forces Memorial outside Paramount City Hall on Aug. 19, according to reports, months after the figure was unveiled in November 2024. The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department says it has footage of the theft.
Bronze soldier statue stolen from Paramount, California, veterans memorial
A bronze statue of a kneeling soldier was stolen from the Paramount Armed Forces Memorial outside Paramount City Hall on Aug. 19, according to reports, months after the figure was unveiled in November 2024. The Los Angeles Sheriff's Department says it has footage of the theft.
Thieves sawed the statue from its base in minutes, according to the source. The estimated loss, including a rifle stolen from the memorial in a prior incident, totals about $100,000. The source attributes the motive to the raw scrap value of the bronze.
The Aug. 19 theft was not the first attack on the memorial. In May 2025, parts of the statue were vandalized and stolen. The city of Paramount subsequently replaced the missing pieces, reinforced the statue, and installed cameras and other security features at the site.
Multiple cameras were monitoring the site at the time of the theft, a circumstance the source describes as having been widely reported prior to the incident.
The source calls on Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman to prosecute the case to the fullest extent of the law, and calls for condemnation from elected officials and civic leaders.
- The source does not state whether any suspects have been identified or arrested.
- The source does not state the basis for the $100,000 black-market scrap value figure or who provided it.
- The source does not include any statement from the city of Paramount officials regarding the theft or planned response.
- The source does not state whether the Los Angeles Sheriff's Department has opened a formal investigation or what charges, if any, are being pursued.
- The source does not state the value of the statue as an artwork or its replacement cost separately from the scrap metal estimate.
- The source does not include any response from Los Angeles District Attorney Nathan Hochman.
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