Vandals Attempt to Make Off With Plaques from La Mesa War Memorial

A memorial in La Mesa honoring veterans from the Vietnam War was left in pieces after thieves tried to make off with some plaques.

On Friday, organizers from the Heartland Youth For Decency found the memorial tampered with after installing a new bench in the same park where the memorial is located. They noticed one of the plaques was pried off from the botton left side, while another plaque was barely hanging on by one bolt.

The plaques hold 74 names of military members who died in the Vietnam War and who were from La Mesa, the Heartland area, El Cajon, Lemon Grove, Spring Valley and Lakeside.

"They gave the ultimate sacrifice and to dishonor them in that way, there's no amount of words," Oresta Johnson from the Heartland Youth for Decency said.

This is not the first time the memorial has been vandalized. Two years ago, thousands of dollars worth of bronze plaques were stolen. The monument was renovated just last year.

The monument is located right next to the American Legion on University Avenue in La Mesa. Organizers plan to increase security in the area and said they will have the plaques back up by next week. No suspect or suspects have been found.

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