Overview
- The 7-foot flamingo sculpture at the corner of Broadview and Snow Roads was taken overnight on June 7, marking the community icon’s second theft in about a year.
- On June 10, Parma Police arrested 20-year-old Colin Donald Deka and 21-year-old Jack Christopher Klamert from Valley View, and the pair face arraignment on June 24.
- Detectives confirmed the statue was recovered intact shortly after the arrests, following review of traffic camera footage showing a white Ford Edge at the intersection.
- Donated in April by grandfather Dennis Vasko for $2,000 and valued at $2,500, the flamingo honors his 4-year-old granddaughter Ava, who has non-verbal autism.
- Mayor Tim DeGeeter expressed frustration over the repeat vandalism and pledged to use all resources to identify and prosecute those responsible.