JOHOR BAHRU - Eleven graves at the Mukim Tebrau Muslim Cemetery in Taman Istimewa, Pandan, here were vandalised for their tombstones, believed to be stolen for resale.
A check at the cemetery this morning showed that most of the stolen grave markers were river stone headstones that cost more than RM450 a set.
Grave digger Muhammad Izzul Hafiq Ramlan, 29, said several shocked visitors confronted him about the missing tombstones when visiting the graves of their relatives on Aidilfitri morning last week before the vandalism went viral on Facebook yesterday.
He said the cemetery on waqf (public) land was not locked at the request of the public, especially the next-of-kin, to make it easier to visit, thus exposing it to intrusion, adding that there was no one to look after it at night.
"We suspect that this vandalism was carried out when there were no funerals, likely at night, (and) most of the tombstones stolen were river stones in sets of nine because they can be resold and the name of the deceased can be discarded,” he said when met at the cemetery today.
Muhammad Izzul Hafiq said white headstones worth RM350 per set were also stolen, and said this was the first such incident since the cemetery was opened in the early 90s.
Meanwhile, South Johor Bahru district police chief ACP Raub Selamat said that so far, police have not received reports regarding vandalism and theft at the cemetery.
He advised the public, especially the next-of-kin, to lodge a report to facilitate the investigation. - BERNAMA