The sleepy Tuscaloosa County town of Brookwood is “outraged” after the brazen theft of six American flags from its veterans memorial park, according to reports.
Per CBS 42, the flags were stolen over the weekend.
Two suspects were spotted on video surveillance. The individuals are believed to be juveniles and are still at large. While local police encourage the two suspects to turn themselves in, the town is offering an $800 reward for information that helps catch the perpetrators.
The reaction from town residents and officials was swift, with the stolen flags being replaced on Monday.
HAPPENING NOW: City workers in Brookwood are replacing 6 American flags that were stolen by thieves Saturday night in Tuscaloosa County. The theft happened at the Memorial park pic.twitter.com/nwJ9dUjCvs
— Tim Reid (@reidreporterguy) June 24, 2019
“It was immediate outrage from the community as soon as the word started spreading. People were outraged that somebody would show the lack of respect for our town and for our flags,” park director Bill Squires told CBS 42.
“And this being our Brookwood veterans memorial, you feel like its a slap in the face of the men whose names are on that memorial, too,” he added.
Just days away from Independence Day, July 4, locals who are used to seeing the flags fly proudly at their community park shared their emotional reactions.
Austin Rico, a frequent jogger at the park, remarked, “It absolutely horrible and I wouldn’t expect this from a nice little town like Brookwood. And it hurts me a little bit because it’s the American flag and it’s everything Americans represent.”
Gregory Vaughn, who reportedly passes the monument often when going for walks, told WBRC that the theft made him angry.
“It’s a disgrace. Stealing an American flag. I mean it doesn’t make any sense,” Vaughn decried.
Watch:
Squires, speaking on the possibility of the perpetrators being juveniles, commented, “Maybe kids being kids. But stealing? If it is, we need to teach them … how the flag needs to be respected.”
Anyone with information relating to the crime should contact the Brookwood Police Department.
Sean Ross is a staff writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @sean_yhn
