The Coos County Sheriff’s Office has released the names of two Coos Bay men believed to be involved in the massacre of one very large wooden fish.

Charlie the Tuna, an 8-foot tall statue that greeted residents and visitors from its home on the east side of the  South Slough Bridge, is literally in pieces after deputies found men sawing it apart on property up the Coos River in the Daniel’s Creek area.

According to a Coos County Sheriff’s Office press release, deputies received an anonymous tip from a concerned citizen on Friday afternoon on the location of the statue. Deputies went to a small hillside farm and spoke to the owner. They received permission to search the property, where they found four people — two men and two teenage boys — with the statue. Deputies said they witnessed two of the subjects slashing the statue into pieces with a chain saw. Upon investigation, deputies arrested Marvin L. Terry, 21, and Mark C. Santos, 21, on first-degree theft and second-degree criminal mischief charges.

According to an e-mail from Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Pat Downing, the investigation is continuing to determine the involvement of the boys. At this time they have not been charged with any crime. Law enforcement officers believe the men stole Charlie while under the influence of intoxicants and chose to cut up the statue after reading local media reports and worrying about the consequences.  

Terry and Santos were taken to the Coos County jail and were later released on their own recognizance.