Overview
- Investigators say three unknown offenders cut the 420–426 kg bronze figure from its base around 12:50 am on January 12 in Rowville.
- CCTV partially captured the removal, with a white van and masked individuals reported by the centre’s committee to police.
- The Knox Crime Investigation Unit has appealed for information and cautioned scrap-metal dealers to watch for suspicious bronze sales.
- India’s Ministry of External Affairs condemned the removal and said it has raised the case with Australian authorities, urging swift recovery and accountability.
- Community leaders decried the loss; the centre’s chairperson said the clean cut suggests theft for metal value, and the statue was previously targeted by vandals in 2021 after its unveiling by Scott Morrison.