Another steal of Olympic medals belonging to an American female volleyball player in six months…
The Orange County Sheriff’s Department in California said that three Olympic medals for women’s volleyball were stolen during a break-in at a residence in Southern California. According to a statement from the sheriff’s office, the medals were the US National Team’s gold from the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, silver from the 2012 Olympics in London, and bronze from the 2016 Olympics in Rio. They were in a safe that was taken on the evening of October 29 from a residence in Laguna Hills, an Orange County city that’s located inland and to the east of the same-named beach. As per the sheriff’s office, the three stolen medals were being temporarily held at the residence.
The athlete’s identity wasn’t released by the sheriff’s office. Looking at the statistics, it’s clear that only two female players have won the three Olympic volleyball medals wearing the USA jersey: Foluke Akinradewo and Jordan Larson. Surfing the Internet, we came to the conclusion that most likely the stolen medals are the property of Akinradewo. Even though she was born in Canada, and played most of her career overseas, her husband Jonathan Gunderson was raised in Laguna Hills.
Investigators are collaborating with the USA federation (USA Volleyball) and the player in question, according to a department spokesperson. They are also asking for help from the public to find these medals.
It’s the second time this year that an Olympic medal has been stolen in Orange County. Jordyn Poulter reported her gold medal stolen on May 25 after her car was broken into in an Anaheim parking lot. Detectives later arrested a suspect in the theft but weren’t immediately able to locate the missing medal, which was returned in June after the owners of an Anaheim barber shop found it inside a plastic bag outside their shop.
