Mourners in a small South Australian town have been devastated by the news that the plaques on dozens of graves were stolen to be sold off.
Visitors to the town cemetery in Quorn, about 39km northeast of Port Augusta, discovered on Friday morning that about 84 brass plaques had been taken.
Local woman Kathy came across the desecrated memorials on Saturday.
‘Me and my sister came in to make sure our mum and dad were OK, and my husband as well, then I came across this,’ she said.
‘It’s very heartbreaking. This shouldn’t happen. Let the people be at rest.’
Holly and her grandmother Yvonne rushed to the cemetery but were relieved to find the grave of Yvonne’s deceased husband Samuel untouched.
‘It’s disgusting what people have done out here. I don’t know how another person can do this to somebody,’ Holly said.
Yvonne added: ‘I’m very grateful that they haven’t touched my husband’s grave.’
SA Police are investigating the theft of plaques and that the matter was under investigation.
Visitors to the town cemetery in Quorn, about 39km northeast of Port Augusta, discovered on Friday morning that about 84 brass plaques had been taken
Local Kathy said the incident was heartbreaking and that people should be left to rest
Council officials said they are confident thieves carried out their plan overnight using tools
The thieves allegedly carried out their plan overnight with a hammer, a chisel, or a battery-operated tool to ‘smash’ the plaques off their mountings, according to Flinders Ranges Council mayor Ken Anderson.
‘The ones around the memorial garden, nearly all of them are gone,’ he told Daily Mail.
‘The plaques are gone. They’ve damaged other ones, trying to get them off the headstones. They’ve removed some off headstones – big, small or medium-sized.
‘The community is just devastated (that) some low-life (has) come and done this to line their own pockets. It is just the lowest of low.
‘This is just a little bit beyond belief that somebody would do this with no care, thought, or concern for those around them.’
Mr Anderson said the thefts had been done for monetary gain, adding: ‘Brass is worth a fair bit in the recycling industry.’
‘We’re sure of that because they haven’t touched anything else. They’ve just gone for the brass plaques,’ he said.
He said the council has tried to reach out to any company or individual that recycles metals like brass and copper.
Holly and her grandmother Yvonne were relieved her grandfather Samuel’s grave was intact
Police said they are investigating the matter
Flinders Ranges Council mayor Ken Anderson said the brass plaques were taken to be sold on
‘These things will probably be cut up, but they’re still fairly identifiable and would take a while for someone to melt them down in a backyard,’ he said.
The cemetery does not have CCTV because it is a secluded, peaceful spot for the small community.
However, Mr Anderson said officials are confident the incident happened overnight, as a council member discovered the damage during an early morning walk on Friday.
Staff then spent most of the day making the unfortunate calls to those affected using their records.
Once everyone has been contacted, the local authority will move on to the next step of repairing the graves and replacing the plaques.
SA Police have asked anyone who might have information to call Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.
