WICHITA, Kansas – The man who stole a bronze statue of Jackie Robinson that was cut off at the ankles and found days later smoldering in a trash can in a Kansas city park will spend about 15 years in prison, although most of that time will be related to a robbery that occurred a few days later Assault on the January statue.
A judge sentenced Ricky Alderete on Friday in three separate cases that he said in court stemmed from his addiction to fentanyl.
Youth baseball league League 42 plans to launch a replacement statue of Robinson made from the original mold on Monday at a park in Wichita, Kansas. The city was shocked when the statue was cut from its base in January, leaving only the statue’s feet behind. The league that mainly serves low-income youth is named after Robinson uniform number of the Brooklyn Dodgers, with whom he broke the major leagues’ color barrier in 1947.
Firefighters found burned remains of the statue five days ago later while responding to a trash can fire at another park about 7 miles away.
Alderete pleaded guilty to the robbery. He was sentenced to 18 months and ordered to pay restitution of $41,500 for stealing the statue. He received the highest sentence for an aggravated robbery that occurred on February 1, which carried a sentence of 13.5 years in prison.
“I let fentanyl get the better of me and made a lot of bad decisions. I won’t deny that. I never intended to hurt anyone,” he said in court Friday. “I’m embarrassed, I’m embarrassed. Whatever you do today I accept. I’m ready for it. I believe I’m where I’m supposed to be right now because at the rate I’m going I could be dead.”
After the original statue was stolen, donations poured in to replace it, including $100,000 from Major League Baseball. Former New York Yankees manager Joe Torre and Cy Young Award winner CC Sabathia are expected to attend Monday’s dedication.
The bronze cleats that were left behind when the original statue was stolen are now on display at the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri.
Robinson played for the Kansas City Monarchs of the Negro Leagues before joining the Brooklyn Dodgers, paving the way for generations of black American players. He is considered not only a sporting legend, but also a civil rights icon. Robinson died in 1972.
This story originally appeared on ABCNews.go.com read the full story
