After more than four years, two 9,000-pound stone lions are back where Columbus police officers and their union think they belong — guarding the Downtown police station.

The statues were moved Saturday from pedestals in front of the nearby former police headquarters and reinstalled next door, at the entrance to the current police headquarters.

"They need to come home," said Jason Pappas, police union president, as a crew from Atlas Industrial Contractors hitched one of the lions to a crane for the move.

The officers and the union, Capital City Lodge No. 9 of the Fraternal Order of Police, were upset when the lions were taken from in front of the police headquarters at 120 Marconi Boulevard in August 2012. The lions were placed outside the old headquarters at 120 W. Gay St., which is no longer used by police.

"They belong with the police," Pappas said. "They are our protectors, our guardians. They symbolize the strength, courage, patience and perseverance it takes to do our jobs."

In fact, the lions are named Patience and Perseverance.

The pair of lions had stood guard outside the old headquarters since 1930, but were moved to the current headquarters when it opened in 1991. After the city spent $38 million to renovate and reopen the old Gay Street building as offices for other municipal departments, the lions went back to their old post as part of the renovation.

But police officers and the union weren't consulted and were upset by the move. Getting the lions back wasn't easy. The union eventually contacted Atlas Industrial Contractors, which agreed to donate its services.

"We were more than willing to help out the men and women who serve the community," said Ray Budd, manager of the company's Columbus division. "Obviously, they sacrifice a lot every day."

The project began about 7:30 a.m. and was completed around noon.

"It feels good to have them back," Pappas said. "It felt like a piece of us was missing while they were gone."