It's a large piece of property that a Bayview woman says can possibly be replaced, but it's the sentimental value that is causing her so much grief.
The lion may not be real, but it served a real purpose for its owner.
"I call them my Lions of Juda since that's biblical.
Those lions always meant a lot to me.
I was devastated that someone had the nerve to come into the property and take one", says Odelia who wants her last name to remain anonymous.
Odelia contacted Action 4 News for help getting her beloved statue back home where it belongs after it was stolen from right outside her front door where the statue and its pair sat for 5 years.
"The statues value anywhere from 4 to 6 thousand dollars, when we got home on Christmas Eve, we noticed one of my lions was missing."
The lion disappeared without a trace and Odelia says taking it was no random act, considering the weight of the statue would have required some planning to lift and then move.
"It would take about 3 grown men to carry one on a trailer or pick up in order to carry it out of the property.
I believe somebody out there knows where this lion's at."
The original price tag on the lions was $6,000 a head, but Odelia got them for half that at an auction.
She says regardless of the value, she had an emotional attachment to the statue which cannot easily be replaced and whoever took the lion is most likely just looking to make a quick buck.
"That is my biggest fear that somebody could be so cruel and maybe have chopped it up and are trying to sell it as scraps because it's copper or bronze.”
There is a reward being offered for information leading to the people responsible for the theft and hopefully a fully intact lion.
You can call the Sheriff's Department at 350-5551 with any information.
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