A man who stole bronze flower vases from Florida graves did it for the money, cops say
.jpg "Police arrested a St. Petersburg man for robbing grave sites of their ornamental vases after he allegedly stole $150,000 worth of vases and sold them for scrap metal.")
A St. Petersburg man is in custody after being accused of stealing bronze vases from cemetery graves, deputies said.
Douglas Deck, 31, lived next door to Memorial Park Cemetery, where police say he stole about 125 vases from some grave sites, according to the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office. Deck is accused of taking the vases that were meant to hold flowers — and then taking them to a scrap metal dealer in the weeks leading up to his arrest.
Someone else pawned the vases to the dealer after Deck transported them, according to court records. The other person was seen on camera giving money to Deck after the sales.
The vases were valued at $150,000, but were sold for $1,149.60, read a statement from the Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office.
Deck admitted to finding the vases at the cemetery and taking them, according to his arrest report. Police also found Deck’s bicycle at the cemetery just 150 feet away from his house.
He was arrested Sunday and charged with six counts of felonies for damaging or removing tombs, dealing in stolen property and possession of fentanyl.
This is not Deck’s first felony. His most recent one came last year after he pleaded no contest to pouring bleach on his girlfriend and beating her with a bucket, deputies said, adding to theft and drug charges.
His bond was set at $107,000 in the vase-stealing case, with his bond hearing scheduled for Friday morning.
Deputies declined to say whether the other person who sold the vases is being charged with anything citing an ongoing investigation.
This story was originally published July 26, 2022 at 4:42 PM.
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