Police seek person who damaged over a dozen historic headstones at 2 Westchester cemeteries

The people who care for the burying ground of Sleepy Hollow's Old Dutch Church says someone used a chemical agent to press a clay-like material on tombstones to create a mold, most likely to sell.

News 12 Staff

May 26, 2021, 10:40 PM

Updated 1,236 days ago

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Police say over a dozen historic headstones were damaged at two Westchester cemeteries this weekend.
News 12 was told that a woman used a harsh chemical to create molds of tombstones at Sleepy Hollow's Old Dutch Church Cemetery and Sparta Cemetery in Ossining.
The stones are now tarnished with a white film that may be impossible to remove.
Some of the headstones are over 200 years old, dating back to the Revolutionary War.
It's unclear what chemical agent was used and if it could cause the stones to crack or fall apart.
"It's more than distressing. It's heartbreaking that somebody would put these really historic, important stones...and not just to our church, but our whole community and really the literary world, to put this at risk it's really heartbreaking for us," says Pastor Jeff Gargano, of the Old Dutch Church.
News 12 was told police identified a person from out-of-state who may be responsible, but without evidence or a confession, they cannot charge them.
Without a conviction, the cemeteries will have to pay to repair the stones.
A GoFundMe has been set up to help pay for damages.