A WIDOWER is devastated after thieves stole a pair of bronze lanterns from the grave of his wife.

Tim Foley went to Hollybrook Cemetery in Southampton to place flowers on her gravestone only to find that someone had tampered with her final resting place.

He had just returned from holiday to find that the bronze lanterns which were fixed to his wife Maria’s headstone had been taken.

After checking with his cousin, who told him they had been there a few days ago, he believes the lanterns, which cost around £1,500 in total, were taken overnight.

The dock worker in Southampton described how he felt when he realised they had been taken from the grave, five years after she died.

The 52-year old from St Denys said: “I felt like crying to be honest. These people that did this, they didn’t know Maria as a person. I couldn’t understand why anybody would do this.

“It must have been targeted, they’ve left the bolts in holding the lanterns on the grave. If it had been during the day someone would have noticed. It would have taken some time to get them off. It would have made some noise. If they’d done it during the day someone would have asked them what they were doing. We all recognise each other at the cemetery.”

Now he is calling on Southampton City Council to do more to protect graves at night time.

“They don’t have any security up there. They don’t even lock the gates at night. It needs to be asked why Southampton City Council don’t do more,” he said.

“Maybe Southampton City Council could do something with security maybe CCTV. Cemeteries are an open haven for anything like that now, whereas before they had somebody living in a lodge.”

Mitch Sanders, head of regulatory and city services for Southampton City Council, said: “The council has spoken to Mr Foley and sympathises with the situation he finds himself in with regards to his wife’s grave. All memorials are valuable, whether financially or emotionally.

“The council has five cemeteries covering some 120 acres, parts of which are peaceful and, therefore, secluded. The cemeteries are kept open for visitors at all times and although there is a small cemetery team working in the grounds, there is no permanent security presence. Given the extensive nature of the cemeteries the council is unfortunately unable to do more in this case.

“For these reasons, items such as the stolen lanterns are placed at the grave owners’ own risk. If any visitors to the cemeteries see anything suspicious then they should contact the police.”