A towering “Thank You, America” monument honoring South Vietnamese soldiers was stolen during a brazen overnight heist in San Jose before police recovered the 9-foot statue just hours later.
The thieves struck the Vietnamese Heritage Garden on Roberts Avenue in the early morning hours of June 21, snatching the statue and several flags as two suspects targeted the site between 3 and 4:30 a.m., according to San José Police.
Officers responded to the garden at about 1:24 p.m. after the theft was reported and launched an investigation.
By 3:30 p.m., officers with help from the SJPD Neighborhood Quality of Life Unit tracked down and recovered the stolen statue near Coyote Creek Trail and Highway 280.
Investigators also located a commercial truck believed to have been used in the heist, which police had discovered had been stolen days earlier from a business on Monterey Road.
The suspects have not been identified and remain at large.
Police released surveillance photos and video of the two suspects in hopes that someone will recognize them.
“Community members in the area are encouraged to review their personal surveillance systems for any additional images or video that may assist investigators in identifying the suspects,” police wrote Wednesday.
“Even seemingly minor details may be helpful to the investigation.”
The stolen statue was part of San Jose’s “Thank You, America” monument — a tribute to the American and South Vietnamese troops who fought during the Vietnam War and the refugees who later found a new home in the United States.
The monument, inspired by a similar memorial in Orange County’s Little Saigon, was built after years of lobbying by the local Vietnamese American community as a lasting symbol of gratitude to the US for welcoming refugees fleeing the fall of Saigon.
