Veterans statue vandalized in Midway

In the dead of night in late September, a vandal crept up Memorial Hill in Midway and used a battery-powered saw to destroy a veterans' memorial statue.

On the night of Sept. 23, the criminal sawed the gun, dog tags and helmet from the bronze figure, a statue symbolizing the items commonly left on a battlefield when a soldier dies in action. Bronze combat boots are all that remain of the $8,000 figure, which was installed on Veterans Day in 2007.

"It's one that really touched a lot of people deeply to have the disrespect, especially to those that were killed in the line of duty," said Wasatch County Sheriff's Capt. John Rogers. "Whoever did it walked up in and just lopped it off."

The sheriff's department took a report on the theft the day after it occurred, but officers have yet to make an arrest in the case.

The group of veterans tasked with caring for the hillside is hoping to raise funds to replace the statue. They also have gathered enough for a $1,000 reward for recovery of the stolen bronze bayonet and helmet.

"I have no clue who would do something like that," said retired Army Col. Gary Campbell. "They have no love for their country or respect for those who have given their lives."

If melted down and resold, the bronze stolen from Memorial Hill would be worth less than $100, Rogers said.

So far, the brother of one Wasatch County veteran has raised about $500 toward replacement of the statue, but he wants to gather the whole $8,000 in time for a Veterans Day celebration on Memorial Hill.

The man, James Hofheins, also has taken his cause to social networking Web sites like Facebook.

"Vandalizing war memorials is un-American," he recently posted in an attempt to spread the word across cyberspace.

A real gun, boots and tags will be brought in on Veterans Day to re-create the statue for the celebration, said Vietnam-era Airborne infantry soldier Dan Hofheins.

Even if enough money to replace the bronze figure is raised in time, it won't be put up until the hill has a security system in place, said Campbell. His concerns stem from an incident 20 years ago when metal plaques bearing the names of Wasatch County servicemen and women were stolen from Memorial Hill.

The names still adorn the scenic hill, but are carved into plastic sheeting rather than bronze.

To learn more about the memorial, visit memorialhillrestoration.com. Donations also can be made on the site toward either the statue or a video security system for the hillside.

e-mail: rpalmer@desnews.com