In Essonne, valuable funerary objects, such as statuettes, holy water fonts or plaques, continue to disappear. Sometimes, decorative flowers and shrubs are also stolen. This type of theft is very common before All Saints' Day in particular.
Indeed, for criminals, cemeteries are easy targets. These places are little monitored, especially at night, are open to the public and therefore easily accessible.
Essonne: repeated thefts from cemeteries, residents are outraged
At the beginning of October, in Montgeron, criminals looted the graves, and mainly attacked bronze objects. The palm fronds, which are on the graves of veterans, although fixed on the marble, were torn off and stolen. “They stole the dead for Francewhere is the respect for veterans?” a resident was indignant to the Parisian.
“These fins are worth a lot more than 300 or 350 euros” explained Miguel Courteille, member of the Union of the Public Funeral Pole (UPFP), to our colleagues. “Everything made of metal increases, but beyond the cost, it comes down to memory, to the intimate. It touches people” he added. Bernard, a resident, and his relatives had several bronze statuettes stolen. “Some are worth several thousands of euros“, he said. “Even though we fixed them with windshield glue, they managed to take them. (…) So, we ourselves removed those that remained on my parents’ grave. Not much choice, with this looting” added the resident who lodged a complaint.
Families call on town hall
“A gang had been caught red-handed and tried in court. They had taken bronzes and broken plaques. They received a fine
and prison with reprieve…And there it starts again” confided Chantal, in Montgeron, also a victim. “They took a bronze virgin from my husband's grave and removed the writing from the plaques.” she added to Le Parisien. “We don't touch the deceased in our house, it's sacred! We cry about it, it's a shame to do that. We know that life is hard for everyone, but attacking graves…” exclaimed the families of Montgeron. They are demanding that the town hall, in charge of managing the maintenance and policing of cemeteries, take measures.
Theft from graves is considered a grave violation and is punishable by one year in prison and a fine of 15,000 euros. Last spring, in Haut-Rhin, four members of a family were arrested and three were placed in pre-trial detention. They traveled through the cemeteries of the region and resold the metal extracted from the objects stolen in Germany. According to the gendarmes, there are 310 victims recorded and the financial damage is estimated at 175,000 euros.
Elected officials powerless in the face of recurring thefts
“It's difficult for people. We have staff on site, but they cannot be present 24 hours a day.
camerasto dissuade, it is a food for thought” recognized the mayor of Montgeron, Miguel Courteille. The latter however added: “in cemeteries, people come to pay their respects. There are places which must remain of the order of private“. For rural communities, this solution is not always suitable.
“Often, cemeteries are far from the center,
without electrical connectionthere is therefore no question of putting cameras“, underlined François Deysson, mayor of Villecerf and president of the Association of Rural Mayors of Seine-et-Marne. “On the other hand, the question often arises in the municipal councils of close cemeteries at certain times during the day. Personally, I am opposed to it. Some visitors come from far away to pray, there is no question of them finding the door closed” he added. For Carine Houdouin, mayor of Richarville, security by video surveillance is too expensive. “The police cannot be everywhere, they must prioritize their actions. We are
deprivedwhile these phenomena have a strong psychological impact on families” she also confided. The situation is therefore complicated for elected officials.
