Cape Town Family's Horror as Coffin Opened and Jewellery Stolen
A family in Kensington, Cape Town, is reeling after the grave of their beloved 72-year-old, Lillian Jacobs, was desecrated at Maitland Cemetery on Friday. The family discovered that her coffin had been forced open and a gold chain stolen.
Lillian Jacobs was buried in October, with an imitation gold chain placed around her neck. Her widower, Jeffrey Arendse, made the shocking discovery during his regular visit to the gravesite on Thursday afternoon. He was met with a horrifying scene: the grave was open, the wooden frame surrounding it had been removed, and the coffin itself had been cracked open.
"I stood there staring at the hole," Arendse recounted, visibly shaken. "The frame was gone and the coffin was open. Her mouth was tampered with. I felt disgusted. Her peace was taken for nothing."
The family's distress deepened upon learning that the intruders had allegedly pried open Jacobs' mouth, seemingly in a callous search for gold dentures. The stolen chain was later found discarded in a neighbour’s backyard, according to Arendse.
Family members expressed their horror and outrage that someone would violate Jacobs' final resting place so soon after her funeral. The incident has left them deeply traumatised and struggling to comprehend the disrespect shown.
The matter has been reported to the police. Police spokesperson Sergeant Wesley Twigg confirmed that a case of malicious damage to property has been opened following the incident at the Maitland graveyard. "The investigation is ongoing and no arrests have been made yet," Twigg stated. The police are urging anyone with information to come forward as they work to bring the perpetrators to justice and provide some measure of closure for the grieving family.
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