From iht.com:
They even stole all four of the Teletubbies! - Dr. Disney
Many of Irelands wax heroes and villains have vanished, been decapitated or stripped naked in a raid that police are blaming on drug-fueled youths.
The National Wax Museum, which hopes to reopen this fall, says at least 50 of its 400 figures were stolen or wrecked in a south Dublin warehouse several weeks ago. Police say they suspect that a door was left unlocked and the warehouse used as an all-night venue for a “rave” party.
Among those stripped of their clothes were Adolf Hitler, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Josef Stalin, Charles de Gaulle, and rebel icons from Irelands war of independence with Britain.
Most figures stolen came from the Childrens World of Fairy Tale and Fantasy section, others from the Chamber of Horrors. Gone are Bob the Builder, Frankensteins monster, Fred Flintstone, Gollum from “Lord of the Rings,” a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle, “Silence of the Lambs” murderer Hannibal Lecter, and all four of the Teletubbies.
Guitars adorning the figures of U2s The Edge and Thin Lizzy frontman Phil Lynott also disappeared. Others, including Elvis and Madonna, suffered lost hair, limbs or jewelry.
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But museum manager Kay Murray said Monday she expects to announce a new location and reopening plans next month, although she admitted not knowing where the money to fix all the damage would come from.
She estimated the uninsured loss at €1 million US$1.4 million and said some of the clothing — particularly the rebel leaders donated uniforms — was irreplaceable.
The warehouse was ransacked in mid-June. Murray said she was speaking out now because the national police force, the Garda Siochana, had failed to arrest any suspects. She said she doubted the police theory that partying youths had been responsible, in part because nobody had seen kids carrying away the wax figures.
“Whoever did it was looking for uniforms, because most of our uniforms were stolen,” Murray said, adding, “Its not going to stop the museum reopening. It will just delay us.”
