A beloved gorilla statue has been "returned to its natural habitat" after it was allegedly stolen from a retirement village garden.
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Garry the gorilla, towering over the bushes at 1.5 metres tall, was allegedly nabbed from the St Helena retirement home in broad daylight on June 4.
Police said "investigators threw their all into locating Garry" with officers from the Air Wing unit deployed to peer into a Reservoir backyard in Melbourne's north.
"Needless to say our pilots went absolutely bananas when they spotted Garry the Gorilla from their aerial vantage point," Victoria Police said.
Officers searched the Reservoir home and recovered the silverback statue from its alleged hiding spot in the backyard on July 1.
Residents of the retirement village will be reunited with their beloved mascot on the afternoon of July 3, police said.
Investigations into the theft of the statue remain ongoing.
Anyone who witnessed anything suspicious, has CCTV, dashcam footage or any other information that could assist investigators is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or submit a confidential report online at www.crimestoppersvic.com.au
Anna Houlahan
Reach out with news or updates to anna.houlahan@austcommunitymedia.com.au
Reach out with news or updates to anna.houlahan@austcommunitymedia.com.au
