In what was reportedly the second incident of the week, around 75 to 100 tombstones have been overturned, with many damaged, in the Mt. Carmel Cemetery in Philadelphia. According to police on Sunday, the incident is being classified as “institutional vandalism.” However, Detective Jim McReynolds did say investigators have yet to establish a motive.
McReynolds said there are cemeteries located on the corners of that intersection, but three Christian cemeteries were apparently untouched and the vandalism appeared to be limited to the Jewish Cemetery.
He did add that the estimate of between 75 and 100 tombstones was conservative and numbers may grow as investigators continue to inspect the cemetery.
Rabbi says "hundreds" of tombstones were damaged
According to Rabbi Shawn Zevit, when he and a member of his congregation visited the Mt. Carmel cemetery, they found “a few hundred” headstones had been vandalized. Zevit said the sheer scale of the incident is incredible. Twitter users are quoting the Rabbi as saying anything between 350 and 500 tombstones had been knocked over and damaged.
A rabbi at Mt. Carmel Cemetery says he's counted more than 500 Jewish grave sites vandalized. Volunteers picking up knocked over headstones. pic.twitter.com/B3VWejd0YX
— Bobby Allyn (@BobbyAllyn) February 26, 2017
Second incident of this type in one week
Nancy Baron-Baer of the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) said the latest vandalism is especially worrisome, as it follows only a few days after a similar incident at a St.
Louis Jewish cemetery. Baron-Baer said that any stone in any cemetery being desecrated is one too many, but the current vandalism has affected hundreds of gravestones in just one week.
According to a report by CNN, the ADL is offering a $10,000 reward, in the hope that someone will come forward with information which will lead to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.
According to Philly.com, with a second incident occurring within one week, the Anne Frank Center has called on U.S. President Donald Trump to forcefully denounce anti-Semitic hate crimes.
Rabbi tells me they've counted at least 350 toppled or damaged graves at Mt Carmel Cemetery @NBCPhiladelphia pic.twitter.com/VVoBuUPIgc
— Drew Smith (@drewsmithtv) February 26, 2017
First reported by a man visiting his father’s grave in Mt. Carmel Cemetery
A man visiting his father’s grave on Sunday morning was the first to notice the vandalism.
Philadelphia police received the call at 9:45 a.m. and when responding officers arrived at the cemetery, they were told three headstones belonging to the man’s family had been damaged in the vandalism. Police say it appears the incident took place at some time on the evening of Saturday, February 25, 2017.
