Several people arrested, accused of ransacking California cemetery

Five people have been arrested on suspicion of stealing thousands of dollars worth of funerary vases from a California cemetery, officials announced this month.

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According to an Aug. 12 news release from the Fresno County Sheriff’s Office, officials received multiple reports of bronze vase thefts at Fresno Memorial Gardens from the beginning of April until the end of July. Authorities said that families of the deceased typically bring these vases to the cemetary and fill them with flowers, leaving them at loved ones’ headstones and monuments to pay their respects. Established in 1959, the cemetery features imported Italian marble and customizable family estate lots, according to its website. 

The sheriff’s office estimates that approximately 500 vases with a retail value of more than $40,000 were stolen and then recycled to generate a profit of about $15,000. Fresno officials believe the funerary goods were targeted specifically because they are made of a metal that can be turned in for cash. Just this month, two men were arrested in a separate case on suspicion of stealing $1.4 million worth of copper wire and pipes in the Bay Area. 

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After conducting a multiagency investigation, Fresno County detectives arrested four men and a woman who may have been responsible for the string of thefts at the cemetary, the release said. However, none of the stolen vases were recovered, and authorities are encouraging the public to reach out with any additional information related to the graveside robberies. 

Tips can be submitted to 559-498-7867 or online at ValleyCrimeStoppers.org.