LITTLE ROCK — A Little Rock man was arrested after he attempted to sell a guitar that was stolen from the band Staind after the group’s performance at Riverfest this past weekend, police said.
Staind guitarist Mike Mushok Jr., 43, of Farmington, Conn., told police that he had used his Paul Reed Smith 7-string baritone guitar during a performance on the Bud Light Stage at Riverfest on Friday night, a police report states.
After the concert, Mushok said he placed the guitar in its case and set it with the band’s other equipment at the back of the stage. When the band began loading up its equipment around 11:15 p.m., members noticed the guitar was gone, the report states.
The guitar’s value was estimated at $10,000 in the report.
A statement on the band’s website the day after the theft said the custom-made guitar “is very close to Mushok’s heart as it’s one of only two in existence, and it’s a crucial element of the band’s current live show.”
About 1:45 p.m. Tuesday, George Thomas Ikard, 22, of 15010 Chambery Drive attempted to sell the guitar at the Guitar Center at 12315 Chenal Parkway. Officers arrived and arrested Ikard, charging him with theft by receiving, an arrest report states.
Ikard was not charged in the actual theft of the guitar, records show.
Employees at the store directed questions to a company media line Wednesday afternoon. Calls and e-mails to a media representative went unanswered Wednesday.
In a brief post on the band’s website after the guitar was returned, the group stated “Mike Mushok’s Guitar has been found! Guy tried to sell it to Guitar Center. Mike Mushok 1-Thief 0.”
Kelley Bass, a Riverfest spokesman, said it would be “extremely hard” to steal from the bands because the festival has a clearance process for anyone to gain access to the backstage area where the equipment was kept.
“No one is back there who doesn’t have authorization to be back there,” he said.
Bass said that even if a person gained access to the backstage area, he doesn’t know how someone would be able to leave the festival with stolen property.
“How are you going to walk out past a security guard with a guitar in your hand?” Bass said.
Jordan Johnson, chairman of the Riverfest Board, said Ikard’s employer was not on the list of vendors or suppliers for the festival. He added that he was unaware of any previous instances of people stealing from the festival’s bands.
“I’ve never heard of any major theft occurring at Riverfest in years past,” Johnson said.
Ikard was released from the Pulaski County jail Wednesday afternoon on a $2,500 bond.
Arkansas, Pages 9 on 05/31/2012