Flags stripped from Kankakee River Bridge in Wilmington

The Wilmington Police Department is investigating the disappearance of the signature American flags that fly on the bridge over the Kankakee River. The Stars and Stripes went missing, either stolen or potentially tossed into the river, just prior to this year’s Memorial Day holiday.

Wilmington Police Chief Joe Mitchell said the department was called to the bridge on Sunday, May 29, one day after the members of the Wilmington Moose Lodge Riders had placed the 26 American flags along bridge’s walkway.

Mitchell said one of the members of the Moose Lodge noticed the flags were missing around 5:30 a.m. on Sunday, just nine hours or so after they were placed on the bridge.

Of the 26 flags, four were located in the Kankakee River.

“We did have ESDA, they helped us, they took one of their drones to go down the river and try to locate some additional flags, but at this point we have not found any additional flags at all,” Mitchell said on Tuesday.

“This is an ongoing investigation, we’ll treat it as a criminal matter until known otherwise, but that’s where we’re at. We’re trying to run down any and all leads.”

Mitchell said both the flags and the flag poles were all missing.

“If anybody saw anything suspicious on the bridge on Saturday night between 8:30 and about 5:30 in the morning, if anybody saw anybody grab anything, but at this point... we know it was kind of windy out there, we don’t know the extent of what occurred there but we’re trying to run down everything,” he said.

Owen Ault, chairman of the Moose Riders chapter for the Wilmington Lodge, said the organization has been placing the flags during patriotic weekends and events since 2018. He credited a Boy Scout troop and Wilmington Lions Club youth for starting the effort.

“We took it over because we heard the youth group was disbanding and it was a perfect community service project for our organization,” Ault said. “You can’t help but feel the patriotism in the community when you drive across the bridge and see those flags. We feel it’s a great reflection upon the community.”

On Tuesday morning he learned it would take $1,508 to replace the flags. More will be needed for hardware, tax and shipping.

Chief Mitchell added that while there had been some talk on social media that the city had potentially removed the flags due to wind, that was not the case.

“We would not touch those flags whatsoever,” he added. “We found four in the river so, what happened per the report... someone could have thrown them off the bridge or stolen them. So, at this point, we’re conducting an investigation as we speak to try to run down some of the leads to see if we can identify who would have taken them or who may have thrown them into the river. We’ve got to look at every factor.”

The Riders are offering a $500 reward for information directly leading to the identification and arrest of the person(s) involved. Within hours that amount more than doubled to $1,250 reward when the American Legion Riders and Wilmington Chamber of Commerce joined in the hope for a solid prosecution.

“It’s a great organization and it’s unfortunate this occurred,” Chief Mitchell said of the Moose Riders. “We’re going to leave no stone unturned trying to find out who did this.”

The police department is asking that anyone who may have information contact the department at 815-476-2811.

Ault said donations to the Wilmington Moose Lodge in care of the Moose Riders flag replacement fund would be appreciated. The address is 32050 W. River Rd., Wilmington, IL 60481.