Arm cut off of Reagan statue in Poland [View all]

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Source: AP

Police were searching on Wednesday for a vandal who damaged a bronze statue of Ronald Reagan and Pope John Paul II in the Polish city of Gdansk by cutting off one arm of the former U.S. president and stealing it.

The statue was unveiled just last year to honor Reagan and the Polish-born pope, who were both widely credited with helping Poland topple communism 24 years ago.

The vandalism in the Baltic port city was discovered on Tuesday, setting off the search for the perpetrator, said Lucyna Rykowska, a spokeswoman for Gdansk police.

The statue was inspired by an Associated Press photograph taken by Scott Stewart during the pope's second visit to the United States in 1987, and honors Reagan's support for Poland's struggle to end decades of communism.

Read more: http://bigstory.ap.org/article/arm-cut-reagan-statue-poland

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In this Oct. 1, 2013 photo passersbys are seen looking at a former president Ronald Reagan statue with a severed arm in a park in Gdansk, Poland. The bronze statue is a larger than life rendering of Reagan and the Polish born Pope John Paul II, inspired by an AP photograph taken by Scott Stewart during John Paul's visit to the US in 1987 and honor's Reagan's support for Poland's struggle to end communism. The police are searching for the vandal who cut the arm off. (AP Photo/Mateusz Ochocki)