Texas Roadhouse Offering Cash, Replacement Armadillo For Willie Nelson’s Stolen Critter

The moment things got real for Ol' Dillo.

The moment things got real for Ol’ Dillo.

Whoever you are, you know that’s not your stuffed armadillo. It belongs to a member of Willie Nelson’s stage crew, and there’s a dedicated team around the rocker devoted to getting it back. That includes barbecue chain Texas Roadhouse, which is offering a cash reward of $1,000 and a replacement armadillo to whoever brings back Ol’ Dillo.

USA Today says the stuffed and mounted critter was taken from the stage after a show on Sept. 19, with the suspect caught on video brazenly boosting the scaly mammal.

“We now are quite clear as to what the perpetrator looks like,” the manager of the venue where Ol’ Dillo was armadillo-napped said. “We’re going to close this thing up right and get that armadillo back to Mr. Nelson.”

Texas Roadhouse has the power to help out as well: Nelson has an interest in two of the chain’s locations, and conveniently enough has extra stuffed armadillos on hand to offer as bounty. Its mascot is the armadillo and all, and each of the chain’s 405 locations has a booth dedicated to Nelson, complete with memorabilia.

“We are appalled at the theft of an armadillo,” the chain’s public relations director said in a statement. “Such low-down behavior can’t be tolerated. We are also willing to enter into an armadillo exchange and give one of our armadillos to the bandit if they will return it to Willie.”

The armadillo thief should just count themselves lucky that Liam Neeson isn’t on the case. He takes kidnapping very seriously.

Reward offered in Willie Nelson armadillo theft [USA Today]

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