Anger and sadness among visitors to the cemetery in Oisterwijk. Several statues have been stolen from graves in recent weeks. Last year the cemetery was also a target of vandals and thieves. “Leave the dead people alone.”
Ria Liebregts (80) was tending her husband’s grave at the Petruskerk on Tuesday afternoon. She comes to the cemetery once a week. She herself had to deal with theft last year: “Every time I put flowers at the grave, they were gone the next day. I put roses on them every afternoon and when I went to look in the evening, they were gone again. away. I don’t understand what’s in it for them.”
Ria now goes to the cemetery with an uneasy feeling now that thieves have struck again: “I just hope they leave my husband’s grave alone.”
According to Ria, the cemetery is often a target of vandals, especially in the summer, because it is open until nine o’clock in the evening. At another grave, an old lady stands by her husband’s grave. She is full of incomprehension about the theft of statues and flowers: “They can buy flowers anywhere, so why do they take them away from here,” she sighs.
The grave of Ida Kain’s husband from Haaren has also been the target of vandals. “They’ve taken ornaments away from here several times.” She is disgusted by the thieves who have struck again.
She hopes that this time the thieves will leave her husband’s grave alone: ”There is not even any respect for the dead. And you don’t expect this in a place like Oisterwijk.”