Gold lunar module stolen from Neil Armstrong museum in the US

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Police in the US state of Ohio say a rare gold replica of the lunar space module has been stolen from the Armstrong Air and Space Museum just before midnight Friday.

Police in Wapakoneta, Ohio responded to a museum alarm late Friday night and discovered the 5-inch (12.7-centimeter) high, solid-gold replica had been stolen.

"This piece is very rare as it was presented to Neil Armstrong in Paris, France shortly after the moon landing," the press release issued by police said. "This piece is one of only three to exist. One was made for each of the three astronauts that completed this mission."

Replicas of the lunar excursion module produced by Cartier were presented to Neil Armstrong and his two fellow astronauts, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins, in Paris shortly after their historic space mission.

Neil Armstrong (C) /AP Photo

Police say the value of the replica cannot be determined.

The FBI and the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation are assisting Wapakoneta police in investigating the theft.

In a statement posted on Facebook, the museum said: "Theft from a museum is a theft from all of us ... For every day that an item is missing, we are all robbed of an opportunity to enjoy it and our history."

Armstrong, born in Wapakoneta in 1930, was the first man to walk on the moon. He died in 2012 at the age of 82.

(Source: AP, Xinhua)

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