Man Trialed and Condemned for Stealing Amusement Park Clown Statue

A similar clown statue was found inside Damien Mayes’ home back in 2015.

A 41-years old male from Wichita, Kansas was recently convicted by a jury from the same state for stealing a clown statues from a closed amusement park. The man, identified as being Damien Mayes, is also a registered and convicted sex offender.

The derelict amusement park belongs to Stan and Margaret Nelson. Even though the park was closed down in 2006, the owners declared that the amusement park went downhill after a series of criminal acts against the establishment which included arson, theft, trespass, and even wanton vandalism.

Reluctantly, the couple closed down the park (Joyland) for good in 2006. However, from time to time, the couple would swing by to see if everything’s still in one piece. The highlight of Joyland was a clown statue, by the name of Louis.

The Nelsons said that the amusement park’s mascot was not only the delight of kids and adults but a member of the family. To this end, the couple hired Damien Mayes to repair the mascot’s musical organ and to take of it.

However, Mayes had his own agenda regarding the amusement park. According to his own statements, Mayes began taking memorabilia from the amusement park to his home in order to protect them from thieves and vandals.

The clown statues and other amusement park objects went missing back in 2005 or 2006, but the couple reported the theft in 2010. While conducting a house search in 2015, the law enforcement authorities from Wichita discovered several objected stolen by the man from the amusement park, including Louis, the clown statue.

Mayes was apprehended and trialed for theft. The magistrates ordered him to serve approximately 15 months in prison. In addition, District Judge Kevin O’Conner said that apart from the 15 months in prison, Mayes will also serve a sentence given by Harvey County.

In 2008, Damien Mayes was convicted by the Harvey County in a child sex crime case. During the trial, the judge found necessary to read aloud a letter addressed to Mayes. The letter was written by Stan and Margaret Nelson, the owners of the amusement park from which Mayes stole the clown statue.

In this letter, the Nelson expressed how disappointed they are of his behavior and that they regret the decision of letting him protect the amusement park against criminals.

Image source: Pixabay

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Tara Hamilton

Tara has graduated from the University of Oregon, with bachelors degree in Spanish Literature in 2010. She lived in Miami for one year and travelled extensively before settling down in El Paso.