VERMILLION COUNTY, Ind.
--
A memorial honoring two Indiana law enforcement officers killed during a charity bike ride has been vandalized just days before cyclists were set to stop at the site.
The damage was discovered Tuesday by the widow of Indiana State Police Lt. Gary Dudley, who was killed along with retired Lake County Sheriff's Deputy Gary Martin in August of 2006 along State Road 63 just south of Interstate 74 in northern Vermillion County.
Flowers had been uprooted, two crosses with Dudley's and Martin's names on them had been pulled from the ground and thrown into a ditch and lights at the site had been broken, state police said in a news release.
Dudley's widow, Carolyn Dudley, told police she was visiting the memorial to prepare it for the arrival of the Concerns Of Police Survivors, or C.O.P.S., charity bike ride Sunday.
Gary Dudley and Martin were riding as part of the annual bike ride when they were struck by a support truck and killed. The memorial was erected shortly after.
State police officials are asking anyone with information on the vandalism to contact the Terre Haute State Police Post at 812-299-1151.
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