John Denver bust stolen from 1st Bank Center outside of Denver

Photo: John Denver bust
This image from 1st Bank Center's Facebook page shows the missing John Denver bust.

A Denver radio station that sponsored a heavy-metal Halloween ball is pleading for the return of a bust of John Denver that went missing during the party.

Someone at KBPI-FM's Saints and Sinners ball Tuesday night pried the bronze bust off its base at the 1st Bank Center in the Denver suburb of Broomfield. The station is asking whoever took the bust to return it undamaged to its studios, no questions asked.

The statue belongs to the Colorado Music Hall of Fame. It was donated by Denver's family when he became its first inductee in 2011. Director G. Brown says concertgoers often pose with the bust or pat it on the head as they pass by.

"Whoever took the bust, the value of it to that person, doesn't compare to the value it holds for the family, the estate and the Colorado Music Hall of Fame," Brown says. "That's why we urge its immediate return."

Police said they had no leads as of Thursday.