Kansas man pleads guilty to stealing Jackie Robinson statue
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — On Thursday, 45-year-old Ricky Alderete, from Wichita, Kansas, pled guilty to the theft of the Jackie Robinson statue.
Alderete pleaded guilty to the charges of aggravated burglary, aggravated criminal damage to property, interference with law enforcement, criminal damage to property, theft, making a false writing, and identity theft.
He must serve a maximum sentence of 19 years and one month in prison and six months in jail.
When Alderete is sentenced, which is scheduled to be on July 1, he could also be ordered to pay $41,500 to League 42
On Wednesday, Jan. 24, surveillance video captured the Jackie Robinson statue being stolen from the ballpark at McAdams Park, where League 42 plays.
The statue, which weighs hundreds of pounds, was cut off right above the feet. The City of Wichita said they estimate the cost of damages to be around $75,000.
It was created by artist John Parsons and is dedicated to Jackie Robinson.
Shortly after the theft, a GoFundMe was set up by League 42 to replace the stolen statue. It raised $194,780. Later, the Major League Baseball’s Commissioner’s Office and 30 clubs committed funding toward the cost of replacing the statue. It will be installed in early August.
In addition, the MLB and the clubs will provide funding to League 42 programming to support its on-field and academic goals. League 42 said it will use a portion of the funds it raised to go towards improving surveillance as well as to add education resources.
Thousands of dollars in rewards were offered, such as a $2,500 reward for tips that led to the arrest of the suspects in the case, as well as a $5,000 reward for the person who brought the statue back.
On Monday, Jan. 29, the Wichita Police Department announced that investigators were able to find and recover the truck involved in the theft of the statue.
On the morning of Tuesday, Jan. 30, the statue was found "dismantled and burned" at local Garvey Park.
Alderete was arrested and made his first appearance on Tuesday, Feb. 13. He was charged with felony theft, aggravated criminal damage to property, making false information, and identity theft.
Wichita police said the theft was motivated by "the financial gain of scraping common metal."