Two people have been arrested as suspected perpetrators of more than 80 thefts in the municipal cemetery of Cehegín (Murcia city of 15,000 inhabitants), in which vases, vases, Christ crosses and other religious figures made of copper and bronze were torn from the graves niches. and brass for sale in scrap yards. The successive attacks on family graves in the Murcian Cemetery on the outskirts of the municipality began in September, prompting the Civil Guard and local police of the aforementioned city to launch Operation “Catacomb”, which ended the arrest of two residents of the municipality as suspected perpetrators the desecration and sale of stolen items worth more than 50,000 euros.
In September, residents of the community began witnessing robberies of graves, many of which were visibly damaged. The thieves only resorted to the metal, which was usually embedded in the tombstones or in the frames of the niches. The location of the cemetery and the tranquility inherent in these areas favored the crime. According to gravedigger Pascual Sánchez, most of the robberies were committed on the same night. The destruction caused great concern for families as they saw the resting place of their loved ones violated.
First, the Civil Guard and local police conducted surveillance at the cemetery. The second step is to locate the stolen items by inspecting metal products recycling centers. The bronze vases are worth 200 euros each.
The first step was to check the scrap yards, which usually buy a lot of metal, and the scrap yards in the area. In one of them, a metal materials trading company in Caravaca de la Cruz (Murcia), most of the stolen items were recovered, which triggered the investigation against two residents of Cehegín, two men aged 33 and 39 with previous convictions. for robbery who were arrested.
In recent months, metal thefts in cemeteries have increased due to their high value on the market, with attacks such as the one in August at the Montjuïc cemetery in Barcelona (where 160 graves were desecrated), Bufali and Guadasséquies (Valencia). , where the thieves left the coffins outside the niches, or Jaén.
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