NEWINGTON, CONNECTICUT, September 11, 2014 (Courant): A town employee made an unusual discovery at Mill Pond Park Thursday morning: In the pond was an ornate figure with an elephant’s head, a man’s body and four arms.
The employee fished the large, colorful statue from the water and brought it to the police department, Sgt. Christopher Perry said. Officers quickly ascertained that the half-man, half-pachyderm was a likeness of the Hindu God Ganesha. Thinking the statue might have been lost or stolen, police posted a picture of it on their Facebook page and asked anyone with information to contact them.
By day’s end, the mystery had been solved. A lawyer for a Hindu group that had a party in the park called to say his clients had intentionally left the statue in the water, Perry said. Such observances are part of the Hindu festival honoring Ganesha, traditionally held this time of year. The figure is designed to dissolve in water, and the group had permission from the parks and recreation department to dispose of it in the pond, Perry said. “Case closed,” he said.