Battleford Furniture is offering a $1,000 reward for anyone who can return their silver iguana statue and provide information of who took it. (Facebook/Chris Odishaw)

By Josh Ryan

Lost Iguana

$1,000 reward for return of stolen iguana statue

May 10, 2021 | 5:26 PM

Battleford Furniture is offering residents the opportunity to make some cash if they can help locate the store’s lizard mascot.

The silver iguana statue, dubbed “Iggy” by the staff, was stolen Friday evening around 10:00 p.m. In order to track down the inanimate reptilian, the store is offering a $1,000 reward for the return of the statue and information of the “captors”.

Owner Chris Odishaw said they had a camera system in place, but the culprits broke the window and were able to reach in, avoiding the building’s alarm. However, a different item was left outside, which the store used to their advantage.

“We put the bike where somebody would hopefully come and get it, under a light, in view of a camera,” Odishaw said. “So, we now have pictures of someone picking up the bike.”

In putting out the reward, Odishaw hopes to get people talking and hopefully lead to Iggy’s recovery.

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“There’s no way that kid can show off that iguana now, not without someone seeing it and coming in to collect the thousand dollars,” he said.

While he expects the statue will be fine, Odishaw said he’s concerned about the amount of vandalism that’s been happening in recent weeks in the community at other shops he’s heard of, making increased security steps necessary. However, he added that he’s not going to let the incident change how he feels about his home.

“It’s so frustrating that we have to keep doing this,” Odishaw said. “I’m disappointed, but I’m not going to let one person change our attitude on what a great community it is.”

The aftermath of the Friday evening break-in at Battleford Furniture. (Facebook/Chris Odishaw)

The community’s character was on display in the past few days. Odishaw said the highlight was a visit from a man from the hospital earlier on Monday, who left the staff a sugary gift.

“He said, ‘you guys do so much for the community and I know that you lost your iguana and I felt bad for you guys, so I brought you a couple dozen donuts. Hope you have a great day,” Odishaw said. “Like, wow!”

And another silver lining has been increased attention for the store. Odishaw said they’ve had plenty of free advertising as a result of the incident and posting of the reward.

“Well-over 50 percent of the people who walked in today asked about the iguana,” he said. “Plus, we’ve barely talked about COVID. We’ve talked about the Iguana, which is way more fun!”

Battlefords RCMP are continuing the investigation and are asking anyone with information on the theft to call the detachment at (306) 446-1720.

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josh.ryan@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: @JoshRyanSports