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Rocky Mountain Heist: Bust of John Denver Goes Missing

A bronze sculpture of one of Colorado's most beloved singers has vanished from a concert arena, and officials are pleading for its safe return.
John Denver bust stolen.
John Denver bust stolen.1st Bank Center via Facebook

A bronze sculpture of one of Colorado’s most beloved singers has gone missing, and officials are pleading with whoever took it to return it — no questions asked.

The bust of the late John Denver vanished from a music venue in Broomfield, Colorado, during a Halloween concert on Tuesday night.

“This isn't ours, it’s part of the Colorado Music Hall of Fame and owned by John Denver’s Family, we want (need) to get it back for them,” 1STBANK Center concert arena wrote in a Facebook post asking for the safe return of the bust. “We don’t care why it was taken or who took it, we just want to be able to return it to its rightful owner in the condition it was loaned to us.”

Denver, known for folk music hits such as “Rocky Mountain High” and “Sunshine on My Shoulders,” was the first inductee into the Colorado Music Hall of Fame in 2011. He died in a single-engine plane crash in 1997.

G. Brown, the hall of fame’s director, told NBC affiliate KUSA that concertgoers would affectionately rub the bust’s head as they entered the arena.

“It’s a one of a kind piece of art,” Brown told KUSA. “It’s irreplaceable.”

Whoever stole the bust is being asked to return it to KBPI-FM studios in Denver.

“It can't be of any worth to them, relative to John Denver’s family and the Colorado Music Hall of Fame,” Brown said.

—Elizabeth Chuck