A memorial honoring fallen police officers in Kentucky has been vandalized, according to reports.
The Louisville Law Enforcement Memorial was defaced and American flags that adorned the monument were burned.
The memorial, located in downtown Louisville, was attacked just days before the start of National Police Week.
According to the National Fraternal Order of Police (FOP) and a report by the Louisville Courier Journal, the crime occurred late Wednesday.
It appeared two American flags were burned in the eternal flame that sits atop the memorial in Jefferson Square Park, the report said.
The memorial is located not far from the Louisville Metro Department of Corrections building.
The FOP issued a furious statement in response to the act and vowed that “the thugs who desecrated this memorial will be caught.”
“As we approach National [Police Week], a time when we honor our fallen brothers and sisters, a monument honoring fallen officers in Louisville was vandalized,” the FOP wrote in a Thursday tweet, including a photo of the badly damaged memorial.
“The thugs who desecrated this memorial will be caught, and when they are, no leniency should be given!
“The memories of our fallen officers will forever live in our hearts and minds.”
Ryan Straw, the vice president and governmental affairs director for the Kentucky FOP also posted a tweet with the photo.
“What a slap in the face this is to our families of the fallen, our officers still serving, and the entire community,” he wrote.
According to the report, officers responded to a call at approximately 11:15 p.m. Wednesday and found the two charred flags draped over the memorial.
Most of the debris was cleared by Thursday morning, except for some of the flags’ remnants strewn along the ground and the damage to the memorial itself.
The report said that Louisville police were reviewing video of the incident.
An officer with the Louisville police media relations office also confirmed that the crime was still under investigation.
One Kentucky priest named Father Jim Sichko offered to pay to have the memorial repaired.
“I will cover the expense to have this restored. SOMEONE WHO OVERSEES THIS let me know,” he wrote on Twitter in response to the FOP.
I will cover the expense to have this restored. SOMEONE WHO OVERSEES THIS let me know – #missionaryofmercy @Pontifex @chrissutter @Joe_Gerth @Delta pic.twitter.com/1DNhVT1sON
— Father Jim Sichko (@JimSichko) May 4, 2023
The memorial was previously defaced in 2020 during the riots following the death of Breonna Taylor.
Taylor died when police conducted a raid on her apartment related to a drug investigation.
