👿 An iconic hand-carved Jersey Devil statue was stolen from a luncheonette Friday night

👿 Police have identified a man wanted for stealing the statue

👿 The suspect has not been arrested


STAFFORD — An Ohio man is accused of stealing an iconic statue of the Jersey Devil from a family-owned luncheonette in Ocean County and police are still trying to find him.

The Stafford police say Thomas Bintz, 52, of Chandlersville, O.H. stole the carving from Lucille's Luncheonette in Warren Grove Friday night. He is charged with third-degree theft and fourth-degree criminal mischief.

A warrant has been issued for his arrest but he was not in custody as of midday Tuesday. The carving has also not been recovered.

Lucille's released surveillance footage of the theft on Facebook. It appeared to show an SUV with a flatbed backing up to the statue around 10:19 p.m. Friday.

The spot where the Jersey Devil statue was. A broken wing from the statue (Lucille's Luncheonette via Facebook)
The spot where the Jersey Devil statue was. A broken wing from the statue (Lucille's Luncheonette via Facebook)
loading...

At some point during the heist, a wing broke off from the statue. The luncheonette said that even if the Jersey Devil was returned, it would "not be in any shape to display" in front of the eatery.

Lucille's also said that Joe Wenal, the man who carved the original statue, had seen the news and reached out to the owners.

(Lucille's Luncheonette via Facebook)
(Lucille's Luncheonette via Facebook)
loading...

MORE: Who stole the Jersey Devil missing from Stafford Township?

"He was very disturbed to see what happened to his custom creation, and he is going to start working on a new commissioned replacement for us," Lucille's said

The Stafford police said on Facebook that detectives had all the information they needed to investigate the case.

Report a correction 👈 | 👉 Contact our newsroom

LOOK: Here are the states where you are most likely to hit an animal

Hitting an animal while driving is a frightening experience, and this list ranks all 50 states in order of the likelihood of such incidents happening, in addition to providing tips on how to avoid them.

LOOK: Famous actors from New Jersey

Stacker compiled a list of famous actors born in New Jersey from IMDb.

LOOK: Here are the states where you are most likely to hit an animal

Hitting an animal while driving is a frightening experience, and this list ranks all 50 states in order of the likelihood of such incidents happening, in addition to providing tips on how to avoid them.

More From New Jersey 101.5 FM