Police Searching For Family Members Affected By Cemetery Vandalism; Seeking Donations To Help With Costs

Payson Police Chief Brad Bishop updated the city council last week on the vandalism that had occurred in the City Cemetery early Sunday morning, March 29.  Over thirty headstones sustained damage, some dating back to the 19th century.

The suspect, a Payson man, was arrested by Payson Police shortly after the crime was reported.  He was in the Utah County Sheriff’s Department’s custody as of Bishop’s April 2 report to the Payson City Council.

“We have forwarded our charges to the Utah County Attorney’s office,” said Bishop, “and we are working with them to bring a close to this crime.”

The initial displacement count included around seventy grave markers, according to Chief Bishop.  Crews were able to return some of these headstones to their original places.  However, there are around thirty-seven remaining that were damaged or are in need of replacement.  Covering the costs to do so will require an estimated $40,000 to $60,000, according to Bishop.

“Hopefully, we can help mitigate the costs through donations,” the police chief said.  “I’m hoping some people will step up and help some of these folks out that had a negative impact by [the vandalism].”

Finding family members of some whose headstones were damaged has presented yet another challenge to local police officials.

“We’re still in the process of contacting some of the owners or family members of the owners of these grave markers,” Chief Bishop said.  “Some of them have been there since the 1800s, so finding family members can be a little bit difficult.  We have a pretty big stack of names we’re still trying to narrow down.”