Rewards offered for information leading to arrest of L.A. area cemetery vandals
Two cemeteries in the greater Los Angeles area were targeted earlier this year by thieves who stole valuable metal plaques and headstones, and now authorities are offering rewards for information that can help them find the suspects.
The first cemetery vandalism was reported at Woodlawn Celestial Gardens on West Greenleaf Boulevard in Compton on Jan. 6 when nearly two dozen headstones were damaged or stolen.
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Woodlawn Celestial Gardens is one of Los Angeles County’s oldest operating cemeteries, dating back to the 1880s, and is the final resting place of numerous prominent figures and local military veterans.
A woman who posted video of the damage to social media, Aisha Woods, told KTLA in January that some of the headstones that were stolen could be “irreplaceable,” adding that many families of the deceased have either died out or moved away. Five plaques that held 150 nameplates were also ripped off one of the historic cemetery’s walls.
Thieves stole a bronze plaque from Lincoln Memorial Park Cemetery, as shown on Jan. 15, 2023. (KTLA) This image taken from video shows the damage after vandals struck a cemetery in Compton. (Aisha Woods) This image taken from video shows the damage after vandals struck a cemetery in Compton. (Aisha Woods)
Days later, Woods was cleaning up Lincoln Memorial Park Cemetery in Carson when she discovered multiple graves had been desecrated by apparent vandals who took boxer Joe Louis’ plaque dedicated to World War II soldiers.
Another plaque dedicated to President Abraham Lincoln was also damaged in that incident in addition to about 100 plaques from the cemetery’s mausoleum being stolen.
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According to a news release, three people were arrested during a traffic stop in southwest L.A. by Los Angeles Port Police on Feb. 14 in connection with cemetery plaque thefts in the Harbor Gateway neighborhood. But authorities announced this week that they are not finished with their crackdown yet.
Two $20,000 rewards – one for each cemetery theft in Compton and Carson – are now being offered in the hopes that a member of the public may come forward with information that would help officials locate and arrest the suspects.
The rewards were recommended by L.A. County Supervisor Holly J. Mitchell at a board meeting on Tuesday.
Tips can be submitted by calling the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department’s Compton Station. To provide information anonymously, call Crime Stoppers or visit their website.
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