A mausoleum and columbarium at Calvary Cemetery in Little Rock were damaged by vandals some time between 2 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 2 and 10 a.m. Thursday, Sept. 3, diocesan officials said.
Mike Cagle, cemetery superintendent, said he and another employee were working off site Sept. 3 and were notified around 7:30 p.m. that evening about the damage. A man searching for his dog called the police after seeing a blue casket outside the mausoleum.
Cagle said three granite crypt fronts were destroyed and two others were damaged in the mausoleum. According to the police report, “The casket of Gertrude F. Higgins was pulled out of its space and had visible pry marks on it.”
Cagle said one granite niche front, covering up to four niches, was destroyed in the columbarium. Another granite front was damaged. An urn inside one of the niches was missing.
Early Friday morning, Sept. 4, Cagle returned to the cemetery to search for the urn.
“We found it in a yard next to the cemetery,” he said.
The urn was returned to its niche and resealed and temporary granite fronts were put into place, Cagle said. The cost of the damage was not available.
“This is our only damage ever to our mausoleum,” Cagle said.
Police are continuing to investigate the vandalism, said Dennis Lee, chancellor for administrative affairs.
“We don’t know who did it or why they did it,” he said.
Lee said the diocese has contacted any known family members and responded to all calls from other concerned people.
The cemetery, which is owned by the Diocese of Little Rock and established in 1872, is open daily from sunrise to sunset. The gate to the cemetery is locked each evening.
