A valuable Buddha statue weighing almost 250 pounds and valued at around $1.5 million has been reported stolen from a gallery near West Hollywood, as revealed in a recent broadcast report.
Officers from the Los Angeles Police Department were called to the Barakat Gallery, located on North La Cienega Boulevard in the 900 block, between Melrose Avenue and Santa Monica Boulevard, following a burglary report on Monday morning at approximately 10:30 a.m., according to police sources.
Surveillance footage indicated that the theft occurred at around 3:45 a.m. on Monday. The stolen statue is believed to be from Japan’s Edo Period, which spanned from 1603 to 1867, as reported by KTLA.
Expressing his deep attachment to the stolen statue, gallery owner Fayez Barakat expressed his distress to KTLA, stating, “I prize it so much. I had it in the backyard of my home, and when I moved into this gallery, I put it in the backyard of the gallery for everybody to admire and enjoy.”
According to KTLA, the suspect gained entrance by breaking through a driveway gate and then used a dolly to transport the statue onto a truck in just 25 minutes. Barakat explained, “This gentleman came and, I think, strapped a rope or a chain around that piece and pulled it to his rental van and put it in the back.”
Barakat expressed his heartbreak over the theft, saying, “I hope that the person who stole it is not stealing it for the weight of bronze because it’s a historical item. Whoever stole it, maybe that person understood the value. Probably, they commissioned somebody, a thief of some kind, to just go ahead and steal it.”
As of now, no arrests have been made in connection with the theft, according to the police.
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