No charges for whoever destroyed Allaire Dinosaurs in Wall, NJ

Whoever destroyed at least four dinosaur sculptures at Allaire State Park in Monmouth County will probably get away with it.

Many New Jersey 101.5 listeners were saddened to hear about the vandalism this week.

Artist Robin Ruggiero had been lovingly creating her sculptures out of things she could find in the forest. Sticks, twigs, bark and vines were transformed into life-sized versions of a stegosaurus, pterodactyl, triceratops and a huge T-Rex.

People from all over New Jersey and from out of state would travel to Allaire to hike through the woods and find the magical creations.

This past weekend, many of the sculptures were found torn apart and left laying on the forest floor.

New Jersey 101.5 Afternoon host Jeff Deminski wrote, "Wouldn't you know some idiot had to come along and destroy what was making children and even adults who found them happy. Most of the dinosaur sculptures have been smashed and ruined."

Ruggiero went to the park to see the damage, fearing what she would find.

She told NJ.com it was clearly the work of vandals, not damage from animals or the wind. The cords that bound the sculptures together and lashed them to the trees had been obviously cut.

Among the sculptures that were destroyed was the giant T-Rex.

Callers to the station have expressed sadness and outrage that someone would do that.

Perhaps even harder to swallow is knowing whoever did it, probably won't be found. Even if the person was identified, they would face no punishment.

The Department of Environmental Protection oversees Allaire State Park. They told NJ.com while they were "saddened" about the damage, the sculptures were a personal project that was not commissioned by the DEP. Therefore, the DEP "is not in a position to pursue further enforcement actions."

Eric Scott is the senior political director and anchor for New Jersey 101.5. You can reach him at eric.scott@townsquaremedia.com

Click here to contact an editor about feedback or a correction for this story.

New Jersey's Most Terrifying Serial Killers

New Jersey Nightmares - Notorious Serial Killers

Say you’re from Jersey without saying you’re from Jersey

These are everyday expressions that only someone from New Jersey would get. What else should be on this list?

What would happen to NJ if we were attacked by nuclear weapons?

We used NUKEMAP by Alex Wellerstein to see what would happen if a nuclear warhead hit New York, Philadelphia, Washington or New Jersey.

The models show what would happen in aerial detonation, meaning the bomb would be set off in the sky, causing considerable damage to structures and people below; or what would happen in a ground detonation, which would have the alarming result of nuclear fallout. The models do not take into account the number of casualties that would result from fallout.

Source: No charges against whoever destroyed Allaire Dinosaurs in Wall, NJ

Filed Under: Allaire dinosaurs, Allaire State Park, Monmouth County, wall township

Categories: New Jersey News