Every month, Maddie Shotwell takes her young kids to visit her dad and grandparents in their final resting place at Trinity Memorial Gardens in Waldorf, Maryland. It’s a family tradition she learned from her dad, who died last year after battling cancer and a stroke.
“It was so important to him, the respect of his parents’ graves,” Shotwell said. “We would go there, clean them. We would edge out their graves. We would take care of them.”
Shotwell said she was shocked to receive a letter from the cemetery last month informing her, “the vase on your family’s memorial was stolen.”
Her fiancé went to check and realized both her dad and grandparents’ vases, worth about $900 each, were missing.
“I’m not even going to lie – I cried because it was just overwhelming,” Shotwell said. “And instead of planning my wedding, I have now put all of my energy towards figuring out where these vases went and how I’m going to replace them.”
This week, the Charles County Sheriff’s Office announced it arrested two suspects in the case: 25-year-old Trey Mason and 34-year-old David Downing, who both face multiple theft charges.
Detectives credited a lucky break in the case; investigators stopped by the cemetery late at night, right when the suspected thieves were in the middle of stealing more of the bronze vases.
“It was really important to us to try to get closure in this case,” said Diane Richardson with the sheriff’s office. “That’s why they kept doing these random checks, hoping to catch somebody, and their hunches paid off. Their work paid off.”
The sheriff’s office said it appears the goal was to make money by selling the vases to a scrap metal dealer. Detectives said they went to that dealer and were able to save about 100 vases before they got melted down.
Shotwell said she’s not sure yet of the next steps. The cemetery told her they’re still trying to match up the recovered vases with the correct graves. Regardless, she plans to attend both suspects’ trials.
“I just really hope they know my dad’s going to visit them in their dreams probably for the rest of their lives,” Shotwell said.
If convicted, Mason could face up to five years behind bars. Downing received more serious charges and could face up to 20 years. Both suspects were held without bond.
News4 reached out to Trinity Memorial Gardens. They declined to comment.
