Sometime between Saturday night and Sunday morning, vandals removed two American flags and poles from parking meters near the ABC Hi-Rise along East Broad Street in Tamaqua and tossed them into the Little Schuylkill River.

A nearby resident noticed a flag in the river and called police Sunday morning. When an Tamaqua American Legion member arrived to remove the flag from the river, he found there were two discarded flags.Both flags thrown into the river were taken from parking meters located on the eastbound side of East Broad Street. One flag, as well as its pole, was taken from a meter located on the side of the ABC Hi-Rise building, opposite the river. The other was taken from a parking meter located on the bridge."We (Tamaqua American Legion) recently purchased these quality flags after receiving donations from the public," said Joel Perry, Commander. "This act of flag desecration was a disgrace to Tamaqua, and especially to all veterans who served and are still serving."Perry added that the desecrations have happened multiple times over the past few years at the same location.The Legion, Tamaqua Crime Watch and Tamaqua Volunteers group are offering a one-time $1,776 reward for the first person who provides a court-used statement that results in the arrest and conviction of the criminal(s). For more information about the reward, call (570) 668-1234.If you have information concerning the flag vandal(s), contact Tamaqua Police at (570) 668-5000.