Florida man ‘deliberately’ drives car into 4-foot blue rabbit statue ‘Thunderbunny’ worth $300,000
Bizarre moment Florida man, 49, deliberately plows car into 4-foot blue rabbit sculpture ‘Thunderbunny’ worth $300,000
- Derek Alan Modrok, 49, deliberately rammed his car into the statue to thwart the city’s former mayor
- Sculptor Hunt Slonem hit back at the vandal, calling his actions ‘deeply disappointing and shocking’
A man has been caught on camera deliberately driving his car into a $300,000 sculpture in Florida.
Derek Alan Modrok, 49, drove his car into artist Hunt Slonem’s blue ‘Thunderbunny’ statue on Sunday morning, barely a week after it arrived at Wilton Manors.
Surveillance footage of the collision shows Modrok driving his red car off the road, onto the grass verge and straight into the 13-foot-tall artwork that has been loaned to the city.
After his arrest, Modrok admitted to multiple acts of vandalism in the city, which police say were carried out to thwart the city’s former mayor.
Surveillance footage of the collision shows how Modrok drives his red car into the artwork
In the footage, the rabbit statue, which is covered in a mosaic of blue glass, shakes on its pedestal before the vandal pulls over his car and checks for damage.
Modrok walks to the front of his car, assesses the damage to the hood before replacing his bumper which fell off in the collision and flees the crime scene.
Police responded to a call of vandalism at Justin Flippen Park on Wilton Drive around 11:15 a.m. Sunday, quickly found the vehicle and arrested the driver.
Modrok admitted to multiple acts of vandalism in the city, including against a sign in Justin Flippen Park on May 16 and a popsicle statue in Rachel Richardson Park on May 18, police said.
The motive, police explained, appeared to be a grudge against former Wilton Manors mayor Justin Flippen, for whom the park is named.
Modrok told police he destroyed the statue because Flippen was responsible for the birds we hear.
He previously served three years for selling cocaine, the Daily Beast reported.
“It’s very disappointing and shocking,” sculptor Hunt Slonem told NBC.
‘The purpose of the image is to make people happy and to celebrate life.’
The motive appeared to be a grudge against former Wilton Manors mayor Justin Flippen
Modrok admitted to vandalizing the city several times
Adding: ‘Really really strange that anyone would want to do this, it’s just a lot of effort tragically wasted, it can probably be repaired to some degree, but it’s a metal base and will never be the same again.’
Officials are now considering how the statue will be repaired.