Howdy, pardner! Missing miner statue recovered

A 7-foot bronze statue stolen last week from its longtime home in the Carthay Circle community of Los Angeles has been recovered, authorities said today. The sculpture of a gold miner, valued at $125,000, was found cut in two at a local scrapyard, where it had been purchased for $900, according to Los Angeles police.

Two men were arrested Thursday in connection with the statue’s theft and are also suspects in a string of thefts of bronze statues and sculptures in the Wilshire Area and the city of Beverly Hills, authorities said.

Sebastian Espana, 22, and Jessie Hernandez, 23, both of Los Angeles, are likely to face grand theft charges in connection with art stolen Jan. 29 to Feb. 12, said Det. Stephanie Lazarus of the LAPD Art Theft Detail.

The bronze miner, which weighed 512 pounds, was taken from atop a boulder in Carthay Circle Park sometime last week. Residents of the area feared the statue had been stolen for scrap, like so much copper wire and plumbing around the region, as prices for metal have soared.

The theft of the large and heavy sculpture seemed bold. The miner stood in plain view at the busy intersection of San Vicente and Crescent Heights boulevards, secured to the boulder. It was sculpted by Henry Lion in 1924 and 1925, along with a fountain, and commemorated 19th century settlers in California.

Police said the suspects also took a bronze bust worth $35,000 on Jan. 29 from in front of Wilshire Boulevard business.

This month, the suspects allegedly took a bronze statue worth $30,000 from outside a business in Beverly Hills, one of several thefts in that city that police allege the two men committed. They also are suspected of taking a bronze mailbox valued at $4,000 from a home Feb. 4.

Earlier this week, police alleged, the two men took a pair of bronze giraffes and a bronze sculpture of children on a swing from a home on Rexford Drive. Police said the giraffes were recovered but were missing their tails. They did not immediately have an estimated value of the works.

A break in the case came Feb. 4 when the LAPD Commercial Crimes Division detectives discovered the miner statue at a local scrapyard. It had been cut in two at the knees.

Police placed a hold on the statue and launched an investigation, Lazarus said, eventually tracking down the suspects. Police then set up surveillance of the men.

Espana and Hernandez were arrested about 10:30 p.m. Thursday, according to jail records. Lazarus said they were booked on suspicion of grand theft. Espana’s bail was set at $210,000 and Hernandez’s at $230,000.

Los Angeles Police Department detectives are working in conjunction with the Beverly Hills Police Department on the case. Items valued at over $130,000 have been recovered to date. Still missing, they said, is the bronze bust and another sculpture.

Authorities said they planned to present the case against Espana and Hernandez to prosecutors next week.

Nationwide, bronze, brass and copper artworks are vanishing into scrapyards, destined for the foundry furnace.

Late last month in Brea, thieves used a cutting torch to remove a 6-foot-tall, 4-foot-wide bronze sculpture from its concrete stand in front of a business, one of three public statues stolen in the last nine months.

Authorities across the country say the high price of metals has prompted the thefts. Thieves, they said, end up with pennies on the dollar for often irreplaceable works of art.

andrew.blankstein@latimes.com

Times staff writer Joe Mozingo contributed to this report.