Vandal shatters century-old historic headstones in Texas cemetery, police say

A man has been arrested after police say he destroyed a number of historic headstones in a Texas cemetery.

On Saturday, police in Galveston responded to calls about a person throwing concrete and debris at passing cars, KHOU reported. Officers in the area found pieces of headstone, concrete and wood strewn across Broadway Avenue.

Not long after, police located Corey Johnson, 40, and arrested him for public drinking while police investigated, KTRK reported. Galveston Parks Department staff told police that over the last month more than 80 headstones had been damaged, some of which dated back to the 1880s.

Reanna Bellotte stumbled across chunks of headstone as she walked near Broadway and tried to “piece them back together,” KPRC reported.

“It’s disrespectful,” Bellotte told the outlet. “Somebody’s family members are buried there, and some people aren’t going to have enough money to replace them.”

Police were ultimately able to connect Johnson to the cemetery damage, which is estimated to be around $13,300, KTRK reported.

Johnson was charged with criminal mischief and harassing a public officer, jail documents say. His bond was set at a collective $160,000.

This story was originally published November 11, 2019 at 12:23 PM with the headline "Vandal shatters century-old historic headstones in Texas cemetery, police say."