U.S.-inspired World Cup beaver statue in Toronto destroyed, police investigating

Police say they’re investigating after a U.S.-themed beaver statue designed to welcome World Cup visitors to Toronto was vandalized over the weekend.

The Old Town Toronto Business Improvement Area installed 51 four-foot-tall distinct beaver sculptures downtown as part of an artistic scavenger hunt.

Robyn Posner, the non-profit’s director of marketing, says other beaver sculptures have also been vandalized, and the American rodent became the latest victim on Saturday night.

Posner says the organization has seen the hard work that goes into bringing the installations to life and calls the incident regrettable no matter what the culprit’s intentions were.

U.S. Ambassador to Canada Pete Hoekstra says the vandalism doesn’t hurt the United States, but it hurts the Canadian-American artist behind the sculpture and the Toronto community.

Toronto police say they don’t have more information to share about the incident.

The Canadian Press