Valuable mounted deer head returned to police department

KANSAS CITY, Kan. -- A valuable mounted deer head that had gone missing has been returned.

A local attorney, acting on the behalf of a client, returned a mounted mule deer head to the Kansas City, Kan., Police Department. The mount was returned on the first day of business for Cabela's, the store that reported the item was stolen.

Employees of the outdoor outfitter noticed in June that the 21-point, shoulder-mounted mule deer head was missing from the store, then under construction near Interstate 435 and Interstate 70 in Kansas City, Kan. The mount is from the 39th-largest mule deer legally shot in the world and is worth between $10,000 and $30,000, said Mark Dowse, taxidermy purchasing specialist for Cabela's.

A vintage .22-caliber rifle and a 100-year-old side-by-side shotgun are still missing. Their value is estimated at $50 each.

The thefts were reported to police June 11 and June 13. Police reports indicate that the mount and firearms were taken between June 8 and June 11.

The incident is still under investigation.