CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- The Carolina Panthers have moved the statue of former owner Jerry Richardson from outside the North Gate of Bank of America Stadium to an undisclosed site for what the team called safety concerns amid the racial unrest in the country.

There have been rumblings on social media that the statue may be torn down as protests continued in Charlotte following the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis while in police custody on Memorial Day.

Richardson sold the team to David Tepper in 2018 amid allegations of racial and sexual misconduct that first were reported late in the 2017 season.

"We were aware of the most recent conversation surrounding the Richardson statue and are concerned there may be attempts to take it down,'' a team spokesperson said. "We are moving the statue in the interest of public safety.''

The 13-foot statue was presented to Richardson in 2016 as a tribute to the team founder, who brought the NFL to the Carolinas in 1995.

Late in 2017, the team announced it was investigating Richardson for racial and sexual misconduct. That led to an NFL investigation, which resulted in a $2.75 million fine.

This coincided with the sale of the team to Tepper for an NFL-record $2.275 billion. There was a clause written into the sale saying the statue could not be removed from its site.