Hunt for ‘Googly Eye Bandit’ is on in Georgia after war hero’s statue gets funny eyes
Police in Savannah, Georgia are looking for a prankster who put googly eyes on the statue of a revolutionary war hero. “It’s no laughing matter,” the city stressed, but was taken seriously by absolutely no one.
The Savannah city government on Thursday issued a call to the public to help it catch the perpetrator who ‘vandal-eyezed’ the monument for Nathanael Greene, a major general in George Washington’s Continental Army in the American Revolutionary War.
READ MORE: ‘Mass murderer’: Columbus statues in US vandalized on Columbus Day
The statue had its own carved eyes covered with a pair of popping googly eyes. The Savannah Police Department was alerted to the makeover and removed the cartoonish eyes on Thursday. No damage to the statue has been reported.
However, since the monument is fenced off, the joker is now facing trespassing charges. Police say they have been reviewing CCTV footage to determine who the culprit was.
The incident might have gone unnoticed but for the Savannah government, which posted the image of a googly-eyed Greene on its Facebook page. The post immediately went viral and reached the national news.
"It may look funny but harming our historic monuments and public property is no laughing matter, in fact, it's a crime."
In contrast to the serious tone of the publication, the commentary section was flooded with non-stop wisecracking, as the majority of locals apparently took the practical joke well.
“We ain’t snitches,” Valerie Cervoni wrote.
“Whoever posted this, does not understand how the internet works,” another user quipped.
The hashtags #googlyeyebandit and #googleeyesmatter, meanwhile, were launched.
History-savvy commentators suggested that it might be the handiwork of Lord Cornwallis, Greene's British nemesis, whose troops the American general defeated at the Battle of Guilford Courthouse in March 1781.
Some pointed out that the amount of attention the stunt is receiving is unnecessary and will only trigger copycats. Others had to make it about race.
“Turns out that I’m nowhere near white enough to be outraged by this,” Kara Bryant Greathouse wrote.
And some reminded officials that there are actual problems to tend to.
“There’s literally a town that’s completely leveled right now and we are worried about $2 eyeballs that barely stick on a good day?” Ashley Jones wrote.
While eastern Georgia was spared the brunt of Hurricane Michael, the southwestern part of the state is reeling from the calamity, which battered it with gusting winds and even spawned a tornado. An 11-year-old girl was killed by a tree that fell on her home in Seminole County.
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