Family members were horrified after discovering the gravesites of their loved ones were destroyed by vandals in San Bernardino.
The Medrano sisters have visited Pioneer Memorial Cemetery for over 30 years to visit their father, who died of cancer.
During a visit on May 11, they were devastated when they realized someone had destroyed their father’s gravesite.
“I come over here and the first thing I notice is where I put my dad’s roses,” said victim Andrea Tovar. “I’m reading the headstone, usually he’s the first one. When I came to the headstone, I noticed that my dad wasn’t even here and there was a hole dug out.”
Their father’s ashes had been scattered across the ground and his urn was found shattered into pieces. The sisters discovered ashes from other destroyed gravesites had been mixed together and dispersed around the cemetery.
“The worst part is not knowing who is who,” Tovar said. “I’m standing there and there’s a pile of ashes here, a pile of ashes there and there’s no way of ever knowing which one is my dad and which one isn’t.”
Tovar said they discovered three vandalized graves with only one urn still intact. All of the grave markers were also removed.
A crowbar was found nearby and an entry gate had been pried open, according to San Bernardino city officials.
Authorities are still investigating the motive behind the vandalism. Tovar’s sister, Margaret Medrano, believes the suspect may have been motivated by money.
“I was told that sometimes people even steal the markers because they’re bronze, to melt them down for the metals,” Medrano said.
The city-owned cemetery is surrounded by homeless encampments which officials said leads to many people on the grounds who are not visiting the gravesites of loved ones.
The sisters are searching for answers and said they’ve been frustrated while dealing with city officials on the case.
“The final [decision from city officials] was we’ll go ahead and collect a little bit of ashes and try to rebury it,” Medrano said. “The one thing they said was we are responsible for the headstone because they’re not responsible for that when I’m thinking, ‘Shouldn’t there be a responsibility to make sure the [gravesites] are safe to begin with?’”
A San Bernardino city spokesperson provided KTLA with a statement saying:
“The City of San Bernardino was heartbroken to learn of the vandalism that took place at the Historic Pioneer Cemetery on Saturday. We met with the Medrano family and are working with them to restore the marker and seal the vault. We were able to recover most of their father’s remains and will set up an appropriate time for the family to hold a reburial service.”
Regarding the homeless encampments surrounding the cemetery, city officials said due to a temporary injunction filed by the ACLU, they are currently limited from taking any action.
The city provided more details on the matter saying:
“Pioneer Cemetery is considered a park and operates as one. There are set hours upon which it operates. Being over 170 years old, it does not have an endowment to fund its operation and maintenance like most cemeteries. It is funded by the City general fund through the Parks Department.
The San Bernardino Parks are also under a temporary injunction filed by the ACLU which limits our ability to enforce many homeless encampment rules. We are actively working to have the injunction lifted. However, it has had a significant impact on families wishing to use our parks and visit their loved ones at Pioneer Cemetery.”
The suspects remain at large. Anyone with information on the vandalism can call the city of San Bernardino at 909-384-7272.