Webster Man Arraigned In Alleged Theft of Veterans' Grave Markers
WEBSTER (CBS) – Police say a Webster man with a long criminal history stole dozens of military veterans' grave markers from a local cemetery.
A state trooper pulled over 54-year-old Alan Savides in Sturbridge Sunday for a report of a stolen dealer registration plate. That's when police saw the metal markers in the car.
They contacted police in Webster, where officers traced them to St. Joseph Garden of Peace. "It looks like Mr. Savides was taking them and probably going to scrap them for the metal," said Webster Police Lt. Michael Shaw. "Had they gone to the scrapyard, we might never have recovered them, and the families, for them, you can replace them, but it's not the same knowing somebody's gone through and desecrated the grave."
Savides' defense attorney said he denies he stole the markers. "Basically they were purchased at flea markets," Leah Metro explained.
Savides faces a list of charges, not only in connection with the stolen grave markers, but also the stolen dealer registration plate. He's also accused of threatening his fiancée if she didn't bail him out of jail.
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