A man is accused of stealing a dolphin statue from a Cape Coral home and selling it for scrap metal at a local recycling company.
David Albert Genovese, 54, of 35 North Shore Ave., North Fort Myers, was arrested and charged Wednesday with burglary of unoccupied dwelling, grand theft $5,000 or more but less than $10,000 and property damage $200 and under.
As of Thursday, he remained at the Lee County Jail on $8,000 bond.
Local law enforcement officers reported last week that they were searching for the owner a 300-pound bronze statue, made up of three dolphins. The statue had been taken in by Allied Recycling, at 3770 Veronica Shoemaker Blvd., in Fort Myers, on May 21.
An employee then contacted authorities believing that it was stolen.
During the investigation, detectives interviewed the woman who sold the statue.
The woman reported that the statue was not stolen, according to Lt. Tony Sizemore, spokesman for the Cape police. She said Genovese asked her and another person to retrieve the statue from a home in the Cape as payment for handyman work that Genovese had done for the homeowner.
The other person reportedly gave the same story.
Detectives located the owner of the statue Friday, who stated that he had been ill and did not know that the statue had been stolen. He said he did not give anyone permission to take his statue and it was stolen from his home.
According to Sizemore, police obtained surveillance video that showed Genovese, the woman and the third individual selling the statue for cash.
During an interview Wednesday, Genovese reportedly admitted that he stole the statue and sold it. He was taken into custody and transferred to the jail.
The statue has been returned to its owner, Sizemore reported.
Genovese has a court date scheduled July 18.