BERGHEIM, Texas – Investigators with the Kendall County Sheriff's Department are looking for two suspects believed to have robbed a grave at a cemetery north of Bergheim.
Lt. Shad Prichard said the crime was reported on Sunday, but may actually have taken place two days before.
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At the cemetery, crime scene tape surrounded the disturbed grave of Lafayette Kuykendall, who was 81 years old when he died in 1961. Prichard said county records show Kuykendall was homeless at the time of his death, and has no family in the area, leaving investigators unsure as to a possible motive.
Typically, grave robbers are in search of valuables like jewelry or heirlooms, but Prichard said investigators are also considering the crime may have been a Halloween prank.
"The timing of it would certainly suggest something of that nature. Being Halloween, maybe they were just looking for a prop of some sort," Prichard said.
The Smith Cemetery is a private burial ground, with a padlock on the front gate. Prichard said a witness reported seeing two people in the graveyard near the time the crime may have been committed.
Prichard said the suspects excavated the grave, removed the upper portion of the corpse, then covered the four-foot hole with boards and dirt.
"To stoop to that level to actually dig somebody up that's been laid to rest, I just can't imagine why somebody would do that," Prichard said.
Prichard said one of the suspects appears to have suffered a cut during the excavation of the grave, and left blood behind at the scene, which could be used as DNA evidence.
If captured, the suspects each face a charge of Abuse of a Corpse, which is a Class A misdemeanor.
Anyone with information about the crime can call the Kendall County Sheriff's Office, or leave a tip by calling Comal County Crime Stoppers at 1-800-348-5323.