Bronze plaques were stolen off 53 Westbank Cemetery gravestones in 2019. Most were recovered but there still haven't been any arrests made.
Image Credit: FILE PHOTO
February 02, 2022 - 2:30 PM
Kelowna RCMP have yet to nab any suspects from three cemetery thefts in 2019 or a similar one earlier this month.
In all, hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of bronze markers were stolen. Some were recovered but the larger ones are still missing.
On Jan. 19, workers at the Lakeview Memorial Gardens near Kelowna Airport discovered that 11 plaques and 80 name plates were stolen. Two of the largest plaques were among five stolen in July 2019 that cost a total of $40,000 to replace.
RCMP valued the latest theft at more than $200,000.
There were three separate thefts in 2019.
Five large plaques – weighing 500 to 600 pounds each – were stolen from Lakeview on July 18, 2019. They were never recovered.
Two of those were stolen again in the latest theft.
READ MORE: Fences and cameras going up in Kelowna cemetery after major theft
There were two thefts in September 2019 of smaller items.
One, on Sept. 15, 2019, included 53 bronze name markers stolen from Westbank Cemetery. The other, on Sept. 23, saw 26 niche markers taken from Lakeview Memorial Gardens.
“No arrests were made and no charges have been laid in regards to the theft investigations in 2019,” RCMP Cpl Tammy Lobb said in an email to iNFOnews.ca. “As to whether or not the 2019 thefts in Kelowna and West Kelowna were linked, yes there was evidence to suggest that they were; however, we will not be releasing any further details in regards to that at this time.”
She was referring to the two thefts in September of the smaller items possibly being linked.
Most of the items from the September 2019 thefts were recovered, although some had been cut up in an effort to disguise them for resale to metal recyclers.
“We have contacted metal salvagers and hopefully, by the media covering the story, it will lead to someone coming forward with more information,” Lobb wrote.
The only other incident at a cemetery that was reported to Kelowna RCMP since 2019 was a break-in at at a cemetery last year but nothing was stolen, Lobb wrote.
Anyone with any information is asked to call the Kelowna RCMP at 250-762-3300 Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or leave a tip online at www.crimestoppers.net.
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