Senior Constable Mark Garrett at Frankston Cemetery with one of the vandalised graves. Picture: Chris Eastman

But its theft, and that of 100 like it, has exposed a chilling racket that reads like a horror story.

All the elements are there, a creepy cemetery, grieving relatives and nefarious ne’er do wells plundering graves under the dark cloak of night.

The organised theft of the vases, described as “an abhorrent act”, has prompted multiple investigations by police as Australia’s cemeteries become little more than convenience stores for criminals keen to make a fast buck no matter what distress it causes to the families of the deceased.

In recent weeks, western and north western Sydney cemeteries have been plagued by a spate of grave robbing with thieves taking everything from vases to plaques, rendering headstones unidentifiable. But graveyards across the country have felt the chilly grasp of the headstone robbers.

One of the brass vases stolen from Castlebrook Memorial Park. Picture: Supplied.Source:Supplied

Castlebrook cemetery in Rouse Hill, is offering a reward of $5000 to discover the whereabouts of more than 100 of the vases which were stolen from the graveyard last week. It joins a sorry list of memorial parks which have proved just too tempting for sticky fingers. Pinegrove memorial park in Minchinbury, in Sydney’s west, saw dozens of its vases go missing while plaques were prised free from the headstones of war veterans in Frankston, east of Melbourne, in May.

Communications Manager for Castlebrook Memorial Park, Karl Wolfenden, told news.com.au that in addition to the bronze vases stolen earlier in the month, a further 72 bronze urns and 42 copper urns were swiped from the cemetery just last weekend.

The vases and urns are valued at $550 each with the total cost of the stolen goods over $94,000.

“Why would you do it?,” said Mr Wolfenden. “Cemeteries are not only places of respect for the dead but are also places of peace and contemplation for those who visit, to pay their respects.

“Some of the affected memorials are very recent, so the theft is adding greatly to the sense of loss for families. Yet even for memorials that have been in place for 20 or 30 years, these theft are a blow for loved ones.”

Mr Wolfenden said visits to loved ones passed on increased in the run up to Christmas with the thefts adding to the heartache.

Castlebrook Memorial Park in north western Sydney where more than 200 vases and urns have been stolen recently. Picture: SuppliedSource:Supplied

While cemeteries were sometimes targeted by vandals attempting to cause damage, that didn’t appear to be the case at Castlebrook, with memorials untouched and the ground left undisturbed. The reason behind the thefts was far more callous.

“There is every indication that these thefts are occurring for the resale or reuse value of the metal.” Mr Wolfenden said adding the company and scrap metal merchants were on high alert for the items which are forged from around 90 per cent bronze as well as tin.

Martin Tolar, CEO of the Waste Management Association of Australia, the peak body for waste and recycling companies, said plaques, whether from sporting grounds or cemeteries, had sprung up for sale to scrap metal merchants with the reputable licensed dealers alerting authorities.

“The issue is there are 600 odd scrap metal dealers out there and only a few are licensed. “Licensed merchants have to meet environmental protection requirements, take records and ensure metal is coming from legitimate sources,” he said. “Those checks and balances don’t happen for unlicensed dealers.”

The practice of “no questions asked” cash payments for scrap metal meant there was no paper trail and no record of how the metal had been obtained.

‘‘This provides the perfect opportunity for individuals involved in both petty and organised crime to generate significant income by stealing items with a high metal content,” he told the Rouse Hill Courier.

Mr Tolar said he favoured Australia adopting the UK system where cash-in-hand payments for scrap has been banned and funds were instead deposited in bank accounts.

“Stealing someone’s memorial is an abhorrent act,” Mayor of Blacktown City, Stephen Bali, told news.com.au.

“I cannot imagine anything worse than coming to pay respects to a loved one only to find the grave has been desecrated.”

Mr Bali called upon people to shop the thieves. “These bronze vases are not hard to spot. If you know the low life who has them, or you work for a scrap metal dealer and someone’s tried to sell them, don’t have any sympathy. Dob them in right now.”

In May, 48 brass plaques, including 15 for war veterans, were forcibly removed from headstones in Melbourne’s Frankston Cemetery.

Blacktown Mayor Stephen Bali has called the graveyard thieves “low lifes” and encouraged people to report them. Picture Craig GreenhillSource:News Corp Australia

Kerrie Allen, whose grandfather Ernest Gay and great-grandfather Frederick Gay served in the Australian military and are buried in the cemetery, described the thieves as “scumbags”.

“They (the thieves) are the scum of the earth — it’s disgusting.”

“These soldiers have given them this beautiful life and this is how they thank them,” she told the Frankston Standard Leader.

Senior Constable Mark Garrett, from Frankston crime investigation unit, said the culprits had reached a new low.

“Anyone with any sort of decency would be disgusted by this.

Mr Wolfenden said the company was assisting police and had informed scrap metal merchants around Sydney of the theft in case they were presented for sale. The vases would be replaced free of charge, he said, but with cheaper versions. “Replacing the stolen items with new bronze or copper items would only create a further incentive to thieves.”

Officers from Quakers Hill Local Area Command told Fairfax they had commenced an investigation into the robberies at Castlebrook Memorial Park.

News.com.au contacted the Australian Metal Recycling Industry Association, the peak body of the scrap metal industry, to ask what was being done to identify and report pieces of metal that may have been stolen but has had no reply.