This story was originally published by The Merced FOCUS.
Detectives with the Merced Police Department surprised the City Council with the stolen Applegate Zoo sign during Monday’s council meeting.
Police recovered the sign a little more than a week ago, but they waited to make an announcement so they could present it at the council meeting, Lt. Jose Barajas said.
“(It’s) pretty exciting to be able to get a piece of the city and be able to give it back,” Barajas told The Focus in an interview.”
A community tipster led the officers to the missing sign, which they found in a vacant residence in south Merced, Barajas said.
The acrylic sign – a bear silhouette with a painted image of a stag in the Sierra wilderness – was found intact and set up for display when detectives responded to the tip. Previously, officers followed a “false alarm” that turned up a replica of the sign that appeared to be an artistic rendering, Barajas said.
“Thanks to our community that is always out there willing to give us a helping hand,” Barajas said. “Without them… that investigative work can’t be done. Sometimes that tip is all we need to get going in the right direction.”
The original sign was a key piece of the city’s broader effort to redefine the zoo as a regional wildlife rescue and education center, supported by $1.8 million in recently approved pandemic recovery funds.
The sign was installed on the R Street side of the building at the zoo. But sometime in the early hours of February 16, it vanished, sparking a swift and very public response. Councilmembers Sarah Boyle and Mike Harris both offered up rewards for the return of the sign, putting the total reward at $500.
A $4,000 replacement sign has since been installed at Applegate Zoo. City officials are contemplating putting one of the signs in the zoo gift shop.
The theft is an ongoing investigation with a person of interest identified, but no arrests have been made, police said.
Since the incident, the police department sponsored new security cameras now operating at the zoo in an effort to protect ongoing public investments in the space.