'A vile act': Families react to extensive cemetery vandalism

Joe Silvestrin can hardly contain his disgust as he looks at the toppled tombstone of his mother and father.

“The damage is senseless. It’s an act of stupidity and hate,” he said.

Silvestrin joins a steady stream of family members coming to Mitchell, Ont. on Thursday to see if their loved ones tombstone was destroyed during an act of vandalism at the St. Vincent de Paul Cemetery on Tuesday night.

“These monuments are very personal to people. These are the names of the people buried in this cemetery, and they’ve got a personal attachment to them, and somebody has damaged that, and been very disrespectful,” said Dennis O’ Reilly, a cemetery board member.

In all, more than 60 headstones were pushed over or smashed during this unexplained act of vandalism, which was discovered by a church parish member on Wednesday morning.

Dennis O’Reilly, Martin Verberne, and John Gaffney, members of St. Vincent de Paul Cemetery Board inspect vandalism damage on Jan. 5, 2023. (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

“These 60 plus headstones belong to 60 different families. Each family has been violated,” said Cemetery Board Chair, John Gaffney.

Police said neighbours told them a group of teenagers were seen lurking around the cemetery Tuesday evening. Police are seeking security footage from people’s homes or cars in the area of the Nelson Street cemetery to try and locate the people who caused the extensive damage.

“We know we’re going to need some heavy equipment to help us. Some of these stones are very heavy. We’re just not sure how much we can do this time of year. The ground is so soft and wet. There is a possibility we have to wait till spring and that’s unfortunate. If that’s the case, we’re going to have look at this for the winter. Hopefully it’s not the case,” explained O’Reilly.

The initial estimate to pick, re-install, and possibly restore the more than 60 toppled headstones is $50,000, which O’Reilly isn’t sure yet whether insurance will cover or not.

“In the short term, we want them back up right, and we’ll deal with the money later on,” he said.

Headstones were vandalized at the St. Vincent de Paul Cemetery in Mitchell, Ont. on Jan. 3, 2023. (Scott Miller/CTV News London)

Right now, emotion around the cemetery vandalism is still raw.

“What goes through people’s minds when they do this. They didn’t steal anything to sell it, they just wanted to cause damage, and it’s not right,” said Martin Verberne, a cemetery board member.

“This is a vile act. These people live their lives, and this is their resting place. At your resting place, you shouldn’t be bothered, you should be left and respected. This is total disrespect,” said Silvestrin.

Anyone with information regarding this act of vandalism is asked to call OPP at 1-888-310-1122 or online at at the OPP website. 

Should you wish to remain anonymous you can call Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS) or leave an anonymous online message at www.P3tips.com.