Arthur O'Neil Had 39 Pink Flamingo Statues Stolen From Yard; Thieves Leave Ransom Note

RANSOM NOTE: If You Want To See The Rest Of The Flamingos...

Arthur O'Neil is not exactly tickled pink after having 40 flamingo statues stolen from his yard in the last four months.

O'Neil, a retiree in Mansfield, Mass., has been collecting the kitschy, pink lawn ornaments for four years and often likes to dress them in seasonal attire.

But he's been seeing red since May when the first rash of robberies happened. Since then, there have been three other pink flamingo pilferings, according to WCVB-TV.

Late last month, there was a break in the case: One of the fake flamingos was returned with a ransom note scribbled on it with a black Sharpie: "If you want to see the rest of the flamingos, call this number," and listed a Massachusetts phone number with a Worcester area code.

O'Neil didn't call the number. Instead, he gave it to local authorities along with surveillance photos of one theft,even though he admitted that there might be more pressing matters than some missing ornaments.

“I understand the police have more important things to worry about, but it hurts,” O’Neil told the Boston Globe.

The pink flamingo-nappings might have ruffled O'Neil's feathers, but it isn't stopping him from creating displays with the birds he has left, including a flamingo rock band and a re-telling of the William Tell arrow-through-the-apple legend, the Sun-Chronicle reported.

O'Neil said that while he wants his birds returned to his flock, he's trying not to have a cow.

“Come to daddy. I’ll do it up to a certain point but eventually I will give up and say, ‘you won guys,’” O’Neil told WHDH-TV.

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