More than 100 headstones were vandalized at a Jewish cemetery in Philadelphia over the weekend.
A man visiting Mount Carmel Cemetery in the Wissinoming section of the city called police at 9.40am on Sunday to report that three of his relatives’ headstones had been knocked over and damaged.
“The cemetery was inspected and approximately 100 additional headstones were found to be knocked over” apparently sometime after dark Saturday, a police spokeswoman said in a statement. A criminal investigation is underway. The Jewish Federation of Greater Philadelphia lists Mount Carmel as a Jewish cemetery in the north-eastern part of the city.
"This is not just a random act," Rabbi Shawn Zevit of Mishkan Shalom, told NBC News. "To topple so many headstones clearly is a concerted effort with intent." No arrests have been made and police have not released information on any suspects.
Local rabbis visited the cemetery throughout the day to comfort those who have loved ones buried there. "I'm devastated by this," said Janice Wilson of Overbrook. "I don't know whether to cry or to scream."
Police believe the vandalism occurred between late Saturday night and Sunday morning. "My heart breaks for the families who found their loved ones' headstones toppled this morning," Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney said in a statement. "We are doing all we can to find the perpetrators who desecrated this final resting place, and they will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Hate is not permissible in Philadelphia. I encourage Philadelphians to stand with our Jewish brothers and sisters and to show them that we are the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection."
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf also called the vandalism a "cowardly, disturbing act."
The desecration came less than a week after a Jewish cemetery in suburban St. Louis, Missouri reported more than 150 headstones vandalized, many of them tipped over. The vandalism was condemned by US Vice President Mike Pence and others.
