Statue of George A. Spiva in Spiva Park damaged by vandals, thrown into the fountain at 4th and Main

Don't go looking for the statue of the late George A. Spiva in Spiva Park at 4th and Main Streets in Joplin.

Joplin police say that vandals removed the bronze statue from the bench where it sat for decades and threw it into the fountain in the park.

The incident happened on or around October 11th.

The statue and the bench, which was also damaged, have been put in storage by the city.

George A. Spiva was a patron of the arts.

He is the namesake for the Spiva Center for the Arts in downtown Joplin and the Spiva Library at Missouri Southern State University.

At this point, no one has been taken into custody in connection with the incident.