CARSON/COMPTON — Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, major crimes bureau is investigating vandalisms and the theft of metal occurring at “Woodlawn Celestial Gardens” cemetery and “Lincoln Cemetery” between the dates of Jan. 6, and Jan. 12.
On Jan. 6, the owner of the Woodlawn Celestial Gardens cemetery in the city of Compton discovered that numerous headstones and headstone markers had been broken/vandalized, and the attached bronze memorial plaques had been removed and stolen. According to the property owner, Woodlawn Celestial Gardens is one of the oldest operating cemeteries in Los Angeles County, with internments dating back to the 1880s. The cemetery includes numerous prominent figures from Los Angeles County history. There are also many local military veterans buried at this cemetery from as far back as the Civil War and the Spanish-American War.
Throughout its existence, Woodlawn Celestial Gardens has been the final resting place for thousands of local area residents. The property owner is still calculating the number of bronze markers taken but stated that many of the stolen markers are over a hundred years old and estimates the financial loss to be in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.
On Jan. 12, a volunteer from Lincoln Cemetery in the city of Carson discovered that numerous bronze memorial markers and plaques had been stolen from the headstones and from the walls of the mausoleum in the cemetery. A prominent bronze statue of President Abraham Lincoln dedicated in 1934 had been damaged by person(s) unknown, attempting to remove a plaque from the façade of the statue.
Additionally, a large bronze plaque gifted and dedicated by former World Heavyweight Boxing Champion Joe Louis to the cemetery in 1949, to commemorate and honor the local veterans deceased in war, had also been removed and stolen. The financial cost of the loss of and damage to the above items is estimated to be over $2,000,000.
In both incidents, the targeted locations are historic cemeteries that have been part of the community for generations. The Lincoln Cemetery now appears to be run and maintained primarily by volunteers from the community, making a full accounting of their loss very difficult.
The Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department is aware of the historic significance of these cemeteries and has dedicated the full resources of the major crimes bureau and detective division in an attempt to recover these priceless stolen items and apprehend and prosecute the involved suspects. Detectives are specifically requesting the public’s assistance in this matter. Anyone who may have witnessed the incident or may have information regarding this case are encouraged to contact major crimes at 562-946-7893, or mcbtips@lasd.org or, anonymously at 800-222-8477; www.p3tips.com.