Stolen Royals billboard figure has been found

A 14-foot-tall figure of a Royals player stolen from a Jackson County billboard has been found.

The thieves who took the 150-pound, three-dimensional figure early Thursday apparently got nervous after widespread media reports and brought it back to the area of Interstate 435 and Truman Road, near where it had been taken, said Bob Fessler of Lamar Advertising.

Fessler said someone passing by Friday morning saw the figure in tall weeds not far from where it had vanished.

Workers from the company loaded it up and took it back to Lamar’s warehouse for now. Fessler said he didn’t know if officials with Hy-Vee will want to have the figure reinstalled.

A person who lives in the area saw the figure being stolen early Thursday, Fessler said.

A pickup truck pulled in under the billboard, and someone used a rope to lower the player from its perch.

But the witness thought the people involved were with the sign company and didn’t report it, said Fessler.

The Jackson County sheriff’s office is investigating the theft.

This story was originally published April 29, 2016 at 8:58 AM.