Police have arrested a man in Spain who recovered a stolen statue of the late golfer Seve Ballesteros.
Published January 31, 2026
A statue of Seve Ballesteros, the late golfer who went missing from his hometown of Pedrena in the Cantabria region of northern Spain, was found chopped up when a suspected thief tried to sell it to buy it, police said.
The statue, which is worth around 30,000 euros ($35,820) but has great sentimental significance for locals and fans, was discovered in a warehouse in Santander. It had been cut in half around the waist.
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The torso and head remained intact, but the arm was broken into several pieces.
Police said on Friday that a 22-year-old man with a previous conviction for copper theft was arrested on Thursday, adding that more people may be involved.
Police focused their investigation on the metal trading center, suspecting that the thieves were planning to sell the bronze for profit.
The 100kg bronze statue depicting Ballesteros in a signature pose celebrating his 1984 British Open victory in St Andrews, Scotland, was torn from its pedestal in La Barqueria Park earlier this month, then dragged across the lawn and dismembered for transport.
It was created by sculptor Salvador García Ceballos in 2009 and installed permanently in Pedrena in 2017.
Ballesteros, who won five major titles during his career and became a fan favorite for his ability to pull himself out of difficult situations on the golf course, died in 2011 at the age of 54 after a battle with cancer.
