Vandalism in cemetery: 30 graves damaged - police are looking for witnesses!

Vandalism in cemetery: 30 graves damaged - police are looking for witnesses!

On March 7, 2025, the cemetery in Beckingen-Reimsbach took a unfortunate incident in which around 30 graves were deliberately damaged. The police in Merzig report considerable damage to property of around 10,000 euros. Unknown perpetrators, both male and female persons, were observed by witnesses, while consuming alcohol in the cemetery and damaging grave decorations, floral decorations and the graves themselves. After the incident, the perpetrators left the cemetery towards Reimsbacher Strasse.

The police asked the tenant of the damaged graves to report further information immediately to support the investigation. Witnesses who can provide relevant information about the perpetrators are also encouraged to contact the Merzig police inspection or another police station in order to contribute to clarifying the incident. This type of vandalism does not often occur, but underlines the social problems that are visible in current police crime statistics.

connection with increasing crimes

The incident statistics are particularly impressive in the context of current police crime statistics (PKS), which shows an increase in registered crimes by 5.5 % for 2023. This year, 5,940,667 cases were recorded, which has been the highest level since 2016. Factors such as increased mobility after the covid 19 restrictions as well as economic and social stress caused by inflation have contributed significantly to this increase.

In particular, the number of cases for children and adolescents increased, with 4.6 % of the suspect children under the age of 14 and 9.2 % adolescents between the ages of 14 and 18. The number of suspected children rose by 12.0 %, and young people rose by 9.5 % compared to the previous year. This shows that vandalism and other crimes represent a worrying phenomenon in society.

While the number of suspects in the area of ​​violent crime also increases, searching crimes, such as property damage in the cemetery, are signs of a deeper problem that requires a broader social analysis. The police and prevention programs urgently need to take measures to counteract the increasing crime and to strengthen the feeling of security in society.