SAVANNAH, GA (May 19, 2015): Monday afternoon, Downtown Precinct investigators of Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department arrested and charged Donald Cantrell Watkins, 57, for stealing and selling sections of historic wrought iron fencing from the City of Savannah’s Laurel Grove Cemetery.
Watkins was arrested at Laurel Grove Cemetery while working with a contracted lawn maintenance crew. He is charged with theft by taking.
On April 27, Metro received reports of multiple sections of ornate cast iron fencing and posts missing from at least seven burial plots. Watkins also is linked to sections of wrought iron fencing stolen from the same cemetery between August 2014 and March 2015.
The stolen fencing is believed to date back to the 1800s. In total, it measures approximately 160 feet by 3.5 feet and is worth several thousand dollars.
All of the fencing has been recovered and will be returned to the Laurel Grove Cemetery.
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