Someone put googly eyes on a Savannah statue. Police aren’t laughing, but Facebook is

Someone put googly eyes on a statue in Savannah’s Johnson Square on Thursday, and city officials don’t think it’s funny.

“Who did this?! Someone placed googly eyes on our historic #NathanaelGreene statue in #JohnsonSquare,” reads a post on the City of Savannah Government Facebook page.

“It may look funny but harming our historic monuments and public property is no laughing matter, in fact, it’s a crime,” the post reads “We are hoping to find the person responsible! If you have information, please call Savannah Police Department.”

On Friday, Bianca Johnson, spokesperson for the Police Department, said trespassing charges will be filed because the culprit had to cross a fence to do the deed.

She said security camera footage is being reviewed to help police determine when the eyes were put on and who may have done it.

There wasn’t any damage to the statue, she said.

Commenters on the city’s post mostly had a field day with the prank. The post had more than 1,000 comments and nearly 3,500 shares.

“It disturbs me that I’m missing two mint condition, extremely rare, 1733 googly eyes from my collection. #googlyeyesmatter,” one person posted.

“Rumor has it that Lord Cornwallis did it,” another person posted.

“So I’m not a part of this community or anything, but you guys do realize you just dared your entire city to googly eyes all of your monuments right? Just pick the eyes off and move on,” wrote a third person.

“And can you imagine the call to crime stoppers? ‘Yes I know you may be busy doing actual police work but I’m at Hobby Lobby right now and I just saw someone buy googly eyes. They might be the person that defaced that monument downtown. Come quick!’” posted another.

Some commenters questioned the time spent and expense of tracking down the prankster when more serious offenses could be investigated.

Others, though, said Greene was a respected military officer whose memorial should not be treated like a joke.

Nathanael Greene was a major general in the Revolutionary War who was a “talented military strategist” and a loyal friend to George Washington, according to the New Georgia Encyclopedia online.

After the war, the state of Georgia gave Greene a plantation outside of Savannah called Mulberry Grove, where Greene lived until he died of sunstroke in 1786, the website says.

Greene is buried under the 50-foot marble monument in Johnson Square, which is the largest and oldest square in historic downtown Savannah, according to Savannah.com.

The square was recently used in the filming of a live-action remake of Disney’s “The Lady and the Tramp,” reported WTOC.

This story was originally published October 12, 2018 at 12:06 PM.