Eddie Van Halen's "Frankenstrat" Stolen From (and Returned to) San Antonio Hard Rock Cafe
Well, this is an odd one.
Just before 1 a.m. Friday morning—according to ABC affiliate KSAT 12—the San Antonio Police Department received a report that Eddie Van Halen's famous "Frankenstrat" had been stolen from the walls of the city's Hard Rock Cafe.
According to police, the guitar—valued at over $100,000—had simply been taken off the wall by someone who had walked into the restaurant through a side door. The as-yet unidentified person then walked out with the guitar, completely unnoticed.
The theft was only reported when an employee, who was helping to close the restaurant, noticed the guitar was missing from the wall.
In an even stranger twist though, earlier today, officials with the restaurant reported that the guitar had in fact been returned to its original location.
It has not been reported, as of yet, how the Hard Rock Cafe was able to re-acquire the guitar.
We'll be sure to keep you updated!
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Jackson is an Associate Editor at GuitarWorld.com. He’s been writing and editing stories about new gear, technique and guitar-driven music both old and new since 2014, and has also written extensively on the same topics for Guitar Player. Elsewhere, his album reviews and essays have appeared in Louder and Unrecorded. Though open to music of all kinds, his greatest love has always been indie, and everything that falls under its massive umbrella. To that end, you can find him on Twitter crowing about whatever great new guitar band you need to drop everything to hear right now.
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