Newport cemetery vandals warned "you are being watched"

Newport Cemetery, at Audley Avenue, has faced a spate of attacks recently, including one last week in which paint was sprayed in an obscene shape on the ground next to a bench.

The damage was quickly repaired, but the family connected to the bench were said to be "devastated" by what happened.

Now Mayor Peter Scott has told the culprit they are being watched, and urged them to refrain from causing pain to mourners.

He said: "There was graffiti drawn, there was also a lot of litter and they had kicked over a lot of small memorials off the children's graves.

"There has been a bit of a spate of it. A tap was smashed recently that people use to put water in their vases. Water was spurting out all over the place.

"There has been a number of young people gathering at the cemetery. I've seen them bashing gravestones with sticks.

"We're trying to dissuade people from using the cemetery for anything other than what it is meant for. It is not an area for play or for vandalism. They don't have any idea how much pain it causes.

"The family connected with this bench were devastated by this. We were able to deal with the graffiti quickly. We ask people to keep their eyes out and ring the police if they see anything."

He added: "One of the entrances is linked to the Tudor Fields. During the holidays, kids gather. There's not much we can do about that.

"It is cleaned up now and the family are happy that it looks how it did before. Hopefully we can stop this anti-social behaviour.

"There will be a few more police swoops. They will be patrolling more. Hopefully that will be the end of it.

"They are being watched."