Authorities in Michigan are asking for help in identifying two people captured on camera defacing the gravesites of former President Gerald R. Ford and former First Lady Betty Ford last week.
The Grand Rapids Police Department said on Facebook the incident happened around 4 p.m. on March 27 on the property of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum in Grand Rapids.
In surveillance footage released by police, a man and a woman can be seen arriving on the property on skateboards.
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After kicking the skateboards toward the site, the couple can be seen sitting on a wall while appearing to pry away the letters.
A man and woman who can be seen trying to pry off a letter at the gravesite of former President Gerald Ford and First Lady Betty Ford at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
(Grand Rapids Police Department)
The two suspects eventually took the letter “E” from the word “committed” off the wall of the burial site, where the phrase “Lives Committed to God, Country and Love” is inscribed along with the names of the Fords and the years they were born and died.
Museum officials told FOX17 they had to spend $400 to replace the stolen letter.
“The president and First Lady are interred here, this is a presidential grave site,” Museum Deputy Director Joel Westphal told FOX17. “There are not many presidential grave sites, we are one of only 14 presidential museums around the country.”
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The former president died in December 2006 at the age of 93. The former first lady died in 2011, also at age 93.
Former President Gerald Ford and First Lady Betty Ford are interred at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library and Museum in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
(Getty Images)
Museum officials said they hope the two suspects are soon found, and view the act as extreme vandalism. They are also looking into other legal action against the pair, FOX17 reported.
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Anyone with information about the suspects is asked to contact the Grand Rapids Police Department at 616-456-3836 or 616-456-3989 or Silent Observer at 616-774-2345.