The Veterans Memorial Park in San Jose has been stripped of a treasured piece, as the bronze "Momotaro" statue was stolen on the 25th of September. Witnesses last saw a suspect walking through the park, a statue in tow, inside a shopping cart, advancing north towards Park Avenue at approximately 7:08 AM.
🚨 PUBLIC’S HELP NEEDED – VETERANS MEMORIAL THEFT 🚨
— San Jose Police Dept (@SanJosePD) October 29, 2025
On 9/25/25, at approximately 7:08 AM, a bronze “Momotaro” statue was cut down and stolen from the Veterans Memorial Park in San Jose.
One of the two suspects was last seen walking northbound through the park pushing the… pic.twitter.com/ibq1SV1tXl
This particular statue is more than just a piece of art; it is a cultural touchstone given by San Jose's sister city, Okayama, Japan, over 30 years ago. Only the feet of Momotaro and his animal companions, the dog and the monkey, were left behind after the theft. Carlos Velazquez from San Jose's Office of Economic Development and Cultural Affairs expressed the community's sense of loss in a statement, per ABC7 News, saying, "This art is not just the city's, it's the community's, it's ours and this was stolen from us."
The figure of Momotaro is deeply ingrained in Japanese culture, celebrated for his triumphs over the demonic oni, and the statue's silhouette was a familiar one in downtown San Jose, a sister city to Okayama for nearly seven decades. Joseph Hedges, San Jose's international affairs manager, reinforced the significance of this relationship in his interview with ABC7 News, "San Jose and Okayama were among the first cities in the United States in Japan to establish a relationship after the program was launched by President Eisenhower," mentioning the shared shock and disappointment among community members well acquainted with the Momotaro statute's legacy.
