Body parts stolen from crypt after ‘disturbing’ grave robbery, Colorado cops say

Grave robbers broke into a crypt in a mausoleum, pried open a coffin and stole body parts, Colorado sheriff’s officials reported.

“It’s so disturbing that someone would take the steps to unearth someone who has been laid to rest and to do anything to harm the body of somebody who’s gone, and how devastating these can be for families,” Jacki Kelley of the Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office told KUSA.

The theft was discovered at Crown Hill Cemetery in Wheat Ridge at 7:20 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 11,the sheriff’s office said in a news release.

Deputies called to the cemetery spotted “severe damage” to a mausoleum and crypt, officials said. A casket inside the crypt had been pried open.

Parts of the body inside were stolen in the theft, which apparently took place overnight, officials said.

The mausoleum contained three crypts, but only one was tampered with, Kelley told KUSA. The body inside was not recently buried.

“It is deeply disturbing that someone would desecrate a final resting place,” Crown Hill Cemetery said in a statement to KUSA.

Investigators ask anyone with information to call 303-271-5612.

Jefferson County is about 6 miles northwest of Denver.

This story was originally published October 12, 2023 at 7:51 AM with the headline "Body parts stolen from crypt after ‘disturbing’ grave robbery, Colorado cops say."