A man has been arrested on charges of stealing an 800-pound cannon to repay a drug debt.
The cannon, described as a “priceless fixture” in the neighborhood, was reported missing on April 3. A suspect was identified and detained that day, according to a report posted on the Wichita Police Department’s Facebook page.
While being found, the cannon was characterized as “significantly damaged.”
An arrest document named the man as Gordon Pierce III, 37. According to the sites, he allegedly acknowledged to stealing the cannon from a park in Wichita, Kansas.
According to police, the town received the cannon as a gift in 1990. It dates back to the Spanish-American War.
Pierce reportedly stated that he stole the cannon because he feared for his life. He expressed concern that he would be assassinated by his drug dealer if he did not pay off a $20,000 debt incurred after a 1-lb bag of meth was taken from him.
Pierce, who allegedly acknowledged to smoking meth for 20 years, told the outlet that his dealer didn’t believe him and threatened to “shoot him and his family.”
He allegedly turned to theft to repay the debt, first intending to steal copper statues. His plans supposedly changed after he discovered the cannon in Central Riverside Park.
Pierce reportedly sought assistance from a homeless man around 4 a.m. on April 2. They worked together to remove the cannon from its base. After getting it down, he looked for more chains to extract the cannon from a friend.
The friend “was freaking out about this, believing he was going to get in trouble,” Pierce told police, according to the site.
Pierce allegedly cut the cannon into “four or five pieces,” according to the affidavit. He allegedly presented numerous pieces to his dealer as proof that he was attempting to repay his debt. Police claim Pierce told them that the dealer was disappointed and concerned that the cannon would “bring heat to his house.”
His acquaintance apparently pointed the police to Pierce, who was then detained. According to Kake News, Pierce was carrying “a clear baggie of white crystal-like substance” when he was arrested. He reportedly informed officers that it was meth.
Pierce is being held in the Sedgwick County Jail on a $200,000 bond and faces accusations of “theft of property, aggravated criminal damage to property, and possession of drug paraphernalia.” He will appear in court on May 22.
The cannon was part of the Wichita Spanish-American War Memorial. According to the affidavit, the cannon is worth more than $100,000, and Pierce inflicted approximately $10,000 in damage to its base.
“The arrest of the individual who committed this crime is a testament to the quick response of our patrol officers, the Property Crime Reduction Task Force officers, and investigators,” a representative for the Wichita Police Department reported.
