Nine wooden sculptures which include the popular character The Gruffalo have been stolen from Clifton Country Park.
As per BBC, this is the second time such an incident has occurred within the past 12 months.
The sculptures, including a fox, an owl, and a bear were stolen during the night, specifically between 11 PM on Thursday, January 16, and 6 AM on Friday, January 17.
The wooden sculptures were added in 2017 as part of a family walking trail created by the council to make one of Salford’s green spaces more attractive.
A similar incident happened earlier in the previous year when the sculptures were stolen from the same park.
Officers, using a description from The Gruffalo, posted a message on Facebook, "He has two large, curved horns on the top of his head, his eyes are orange, and his tongue is black, he has a poisonous wart on the end of his nose and bright purple prickles on his back BUT WHERE IS HE?"
Police have asked for help from anyone who may have CCTV footage from the area to come forward.
They are also trying to find a vehicle that was seen entering the park’s parking area.
Councillor Barbara Bentham, the council's lead member for neighbourhoods, environment and community safety, said staff and volunteers were "truly devastated.”
She added, “It appears the thieves used a vehicle to access the park, cutting through chains and locks on the park gate and used significant heavy-duty tools to dig out the sculptures and cut through the steel rods that were used to secure them in position.”
The Gruffalo, written by Julia Donaldson and published in 1999 has sold over 18 million copies globally.
