A statue of the celebrated cartoon character, Dennis the Menace, was stolen from a city park in California, sometime late Thursday night or early Friday morning, Monterey police officials report. The short, spunky, and mischievous terror known for finding trouble and laughs had stood enshrined as a 3-foot, 125 pound statue overlooking park benches and pigeons for the last two decades, with little incident, at least until the menacing thief or thieves unbolted the figure from his resting place.

Police said the statue was worth approximately $30,000. The city of Monterey is offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to the statues safe return.

The statue, commissioned by Hank Ketcham, the troubling tike's creator, was sculpted by artist Wah Ming Chang, and had become a kind of local shrine for locals.

Police are unsure just how the thief or thieves were able to get away with the rather cumbersome figure. An investigation is underway to locate Dennis and solve the menacing robbery.