Nearly three weeks after a bronze statue of Jackie Robinson was stolen from a youth league baseball facility in Wichita, Kansas, and later found destroyed, an arrest was announced in the case Tuesday.
The Wichita Police Department said Ricky Alderete, 45, was charged with felony theft, aggravated criminal damage to property, identity theft and making false information.
“The investigation has not revealed any evidence indicating that this was a hate-motivated crime,” said Wichita Police Lt. Aaron Moses during a news conference. “Instead, we believe this theft was motivated by the financial gain of scrapping common metal.”
Ricky Alderete, 45, was charged with felony theft, among other charges, in connection with the stolen status. Sedgwick County Sheriff's Office
Police declined to provide more details on Alderete’s alleged involvement in the theft until the case is presented in court. CNN contacted the court clerk Tuesday to request charging documents. District Attorney’s Office spokesperson Dan Dillon told CNN that Alderete was scheduled to appear in court at 2:30 p.m. CT Tuesday and would be assigned a public defender at that time.
Wichita Police say they have surveillance video showing at least three people present when the statue was stolen on January 25.
“We have every intention of making additional arrests in this,” Sgt. Trevor McDonald said.
Authorities added that more than 100 interviews were conducted in the search for suspects. “This was a painstaking investigation,” said Police Chief Joe Sullivan.
Wichita Police say Alderete was already in custody for another case unrelated to the statue when he was charged. Court records show he had been charged with kidnapping and aggravated burglary, in addition to other charges, for an incident on February 1, one week after the Jackie Robinson statue was stolen.
A GoFundMe launched to raise funds to replace the statue has reached almost $200,000.
League 42, a non-profit that provides low-cost baseball registration for children, had raised $50,000 for the life-sized statue at its field, according to CNN affiliate KLBY. The league was named after Robinson’s jersey number, honoring the legendary athlete who broke the Major League Baseball’s color barrier as a Black player when he joined the Dodgers, then based in Brooklyn.