Arrests Made Weeks After Historic Plaques Stolen From Long Beach Park

LONG BEACH, CA — Weeks after historic plaques were stolen from a Long Beach park statue, two arrests have been made, police announced Thursday.

Sean Green, 44, of Long Beach, and Anthony Martinez, 34, of Long Beach, were each arrested on a count of grand theft in connection with plaques stolen from Martin Luther King Jr. Park, the Long Beach Police Department said. Martinez is facing additional counts of conspiracy and possession of methamphetamine, according to police.

“The theft and vandalism targeting the statue of Martin Luther King Jr. at MLK Park is unacceptable and will not be tolerated,” Chief of Police Wally Hebeish said in a written statement.

The two men are accused of stealing “several plaques from the MLK statue” in the early morning hours of Nov. 27, police said.

“They then placed the plaques in the bed of a truck and left the area,” police said.

In a statement shared on Facebook, Council Member Suely Saro called the theft of the plaques a “troubling incident.”

“I am deeply saddened and outraged by the theft,” Saro said. “Such acts not only disrespect our shared history but also impact the entire community.

Saro said she’s committed to having the plaques replaced to preserve “the legacy they represent.”

Officers responded to the park on Dec. 1 after getting a report about the stolen plaques, Public Information Officer Eric Stachura previously said in an email to Patch.

After collecting security footage and searching the area, detectives “began reviewing Automatic License Plate Reader data to identify the suspects,” police said.

Detectives’ investigation led them to identify Green and Martinez as suspects, police said.

An investigation is ongoing, as detectives try “to recover the stolen plaques,” police said, adding that anyone with information is asked to contact police at 562-570-7351.

The theft comes after “the statue at Martin Luther King Jr. Park was defaced with graffiti” in late October, according to Mayor Rex Richardson.

The statue, however, was quickly restored, Richardson said.

“We won’t let negativity define our city,” Richardson wrote. “Long Beach is strong, united, and resilient — and when something tries to bring us down, we rise together.”