SAN ANTONIO – Over the weekend, thieves hauled away a 57 mm cannon from the American Legion Alamo Post 2 on Fredericksburg Road.
“Shame on you for taking it,” said Geronimo Franco, an American Legion member.
Dedicated in 1946, the pair of World War II-era cannons had become landmarks.
“People that drive by this post identify the post because of the guns out front,” said Arturo Escobar, an American Legion member.
Escobar said both cannons were secured, but “they took the harder one of the two to take and left the easier one of the post because they couldn’t actually figure out how to hook it.”
The thieves left behind a tire jack they apparently tried to use.
Franco said, “they just dragged that thing away” because the wheels of the cannon didn’t turn anymore.
“It’s a loss. We cannot replace this weapon,” Escobar said.
American Legion members said the canon is a symbol of the nation’s service and sacrifice during the war.
Closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the post is in need of repairs.
American Legion members said they hope someone will call the San Antonio Police Department with any information.
“I don’t know what they’re going to do with a cannon, where they’re going to be able to hide it,” Franco said. “Unless they turn into scrap, which is a really bad idea.”