The saga of the stolen Roswell museum UFO came to a swift and sad conclusion when police discovered what they believe to be pieces of the model craft on the side a road.
Authorities are still on the hunt for the three individuals responsible for the incident, but it appears that any hope of recovering the craft intact has been lost.
The International UFO Museum has said that they plan to replace the pilfered and pulverized UFO once funds and scheduling allow for it.
Meanwhile, visitors to Roswell are reacting to the event with a combination of shock and dismay.
"You think of things like that happening only in large metropolitan cities not small ones like this," tourist Carolyn Jackson lamented to KRQE.
Her husband, Eric, also expressed scorn for the hooligans who made off with the UFO on Sunday morning.
"People want to see these things. This is a worldwide event and then you just take the space ship away? That's terrible," he told the TV station.
The unfortunate loss of the iconic UFO notwithstanding, perhaps we can take solace in the poetic ending for the craft: discovered as a debris field in the New Mexican desert, much like the flying saucer that started it all.
Source: KRQE