A $1.5 million Buddha statue weighing nearly 250 pounds that was stolen from a Southern California gallery has been recovered.
The weighty 4-foot-tall statue was stolen around 4 a.m. Sept. 18 from the Barakat Gallery in the 900 block of North La Cienega Boulevard in the Beverly Grove area. Security camera video showed what appeared to be a rented moving van backing up to the gallery gate.
A faint figure can be seen moving in the darkness.
Details about where the statue was recovered were not available early Thursday.
The stolen statue depicts a seated Buddha with a halo that was created during Japan’s Edo Period (1603-1867), according to the gallery.
A 44-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of receiving stolen property. It was not immediately clear whether anyone was arrested in the theft itself.
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Anyone with information about the theft was urged to contact the Los Angeles Police Department at 1-877-275-5273.
