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Kansas City’s 45-Year-Old Pleads Guilty Over Jackie Robinson’s Statue Theft; Faces Nearly 20 Years In Jail
A man has pled guilty to being involved in the theft of the statue of baseball legend Jackie Robinson from a park in Kansas.
![Jackie Robinson's statue which was cut leaving the leg behind [Credit-Youtube@Wichita Eagle]](https://www.pinkvilla.com/images/2024-05/1516121229_jackie-robinsons-statue-which-was-cut-leaving-the-leg-behind-credit-youtubewichita-eagle.jpg "Jackie Robinson's statue which was cut leaving the leg behind [Credit-Youtube@Wichita Eagle]")
Ricky Alderete, 45, got arrested in January when a Jackie Robinson monument was stolen from a youth baseball club in Wichita, Kansas. He pled guilty to larceny and other crimes on Thursday, according to Sedgwick County District Court.
Ricky Alderete can face nearly 20 Years in prison
Ricky Alderete admitted to helping take the monument from the Jackie Robinson Pavilion at McAdams Park in January of this year and transporting it in a pickup vehicle. According to investigators, Alderete was one of the suspects who chopped off the statue's ankles, leaving just Robinson's feet.
At the time, officials projected that the damage would be roughly $75,000. Alderete could face more than 19 years behind bars when he is sentenced on July 1, according to the district attorney.
Ricky Alderete has many other charges on him
In addition to stealing, he will be punished for aggravated burglary, aggravated criminal damage to property, interference with law enforcement, criminal damage to property, creating fictitious writing, and identity theft. The charges stem from the theft, as well as his identification and arrest, according to the district attorney's office.
The prosecutor's office also stated that Alderete will have to pay $41,500 to League 42, the youth baseball organization named after the Brooklyn Dodgers star. 
Authorities earlier stated that surveillance video recorded at least three people entering Jackie Robinson Pavilion at about midnight on Jan. 25 and removing and leaving with the monument.
The monument was discovered disassembled and destroyed in a garbage bin fire at Garvey Park on Jan. 30, according to officials.
The statue was placed in 2021
The monument was created by artist John Parsons and presented to the city by League 42, a foundation named after Robinson's Brooklyn Dodgers jersey number that attempts to bring baseball to Wichita's youngsters.
According to the Associated Press, League 42 spent around $50,000 for the artwork, which was placed in 2021. Robinson is well recognized for becoming the first baseball player to break the color barrier in the contemporary era of Major League Baseball. Before signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers in 1947, he played for the Negro leagues' Kansas City Monarchs and the minor league Montreal Royals.
The signing marked the end of segregation in baseball and paved the way for additional Black players to enter the major leagues. Robinson was the Dodgers' Rookie of the Year in 1947, the National League MVP in 1949, a six-time All-Star, and World Series champion in 1955.
Authorities further stated that they believe the statue is no longer entire, having been disassembled by the robbers, and will need to be completely replaced. Since its loss, community members have donated approximately $200,000 (£159,650) in online fundraising, and Major League Baseball (MLB), North America's professional baseball organization, has promised to replace it. City authorities expect the new monument to be built by summer.
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