Police locate SpongeBob safe in Calais

CALAIS – A criminal caper that could have led to an all-points bulletin and charges of “spongenapping” quickly unraveled Saturday night when local police recovered SpongeBob SquarePants, a little soggy but otherwise perfect.

The 9-foot inflatable display, which is part of a nationwide promotion tied to “The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie,” was returned to Burger King on North Street that same night.

Burger King spokesman Eric Anderson said Monday that Maine was the 18th state to be hit by the kidnap caper. “You’re the first one that I know of in Maine,” he said.

When he is not sitting on top of roofs, the popular Nickelodeon cartoon character lives in a pineapple in the ocean. He cooks Krabby Patties for a living and pals around with a starfish named Patrick. Recently he moved from television fame to movie star stature with the release of his first movie.

The banana-colored cartoon character with the big, toothy grin has been on the local food chain’s roof ever since the promotion began last month. The cartoon show is popular with youngsters and oldsters alike.

Around 10:20 p.m. Burger King employees spotted a pickup truck traveling on North Street with SpongeBob in the back. It was unclear if anyone was in the bed of the truck with him or if the cartoon character had been bound and gagged.

But it was apparent the inflatable toy had been taken against his will, although it was not clear if any weapons were used. Police did not rule out foul play.

About an hour later, the spongenappers returned SpongeBob, Calais police Sgt. David Randall said Monday.

“We had to do a little bit of checking around and searching and the officers talked to some people who had borrowed him and suggested they ought to bring him back here, which they did,” he said. Burger King representatives declined to press charges.

The inflatable cartoon icon is just one of hundreds that have gone missing nationwide.

In Jacksonville, Fla., reporters said that dozens of SpongeBob SquarePants balloons had been stolen from Florida to Utah.

Thieves in Minnesota, according to local news accounts, demanded a ransom. “We have SpongeBob,” the note said. “Give us 10 Crabby Patties, fries and milkshakes.” Plankton, SpongeBob’s archenemy, signed the note. A postscript said, “Patrick is next.”

Randall estimated the cost of the inflatable figure at around $1,600, but the Burger King spokesman said that might be too high.

On its Web site, the corporate giant announced it would pay a reward of Burger Bucks for a year’s supply of original Whopper sandwiches for information leading to the safe return of the missing SpongeBobs. However, the reward only applied to previously stolen SpongeBob SquarePants inflatable balloons.

Although the Calais SpongeBob is back at the burger palace, Randall said it was not back on the roof. “He is not going back on top of the roof. They think they are going to send him back to Bikini Bottom where he can live free and safe with Patrick,” the sergeant said.

The corporate giant operates more than 11,000 restaurants in 50 states and 52 countries around the world. Ninety percent of the restaurants are owned and operated by independent franchisees, many of them family-owned operations that have been in business for decades, the company Web site said.