NORTH OLMSTED, Ohio — Just when you think it can't get much worse after losing a child, it does.
Denise Williams lost her son, Derrick Armour, in 2020.
"Our favorite times were listening to the old country classics. He was the one that always worked on my car, did my oil changes. He gave me three grandkids, so yeah, he was special. He was my firstborn," Williams said.
Since his passing, a niche mausoleum has been set up at Sunset Memorial Cemetery in North Olmsted.
Inside the illuminated glass box is Derrick's wedding ring and a picture of him and his kids.
"It's a beautiful facility," Williams said to describe Sunset Memorial.
I spoke to Williams, who told me it's too hard for her to visit the mausoleum, but that other members of her family do.
"My brother was out there on Valentine's Day and he went to see my son. After being there a few minutes, he noticed something didn't seem right," Williams said.
She said the bud vase, as well as her son's wedding ring, were missing.
"That's like his home now. So somebody came into his home, went into it, took something from it. Did they touch his urn? Did they touch the picture of my grandkids? So yeah, that's bothersome," Williams said.
According to Williams, her brother reported it to Sunset Memorial Cemetery, which then contacted Olmsted Township Police.
According to an Olmsted Township Police report, Williams' family isn't the only one to have been stolen from.
Records indicate a retired Lakewood Police badge, identification card, and wallet had been stolen from Sunset Memorial, too.
On Feb. 13, the badge, identification card, and wallet had been found on a man who was arrested in Indiana due to allegations of theft at a different funeral home outside of Indianapolis.
The man, according to a New Castle police report, told officers he'd found the badge on the ground and didn't know what to do with it.
Also found on this man were tools believed to have been used during the thievery and other potentially stolen items from mausoleums, according to photos snapped by Olmsted Township and shared with us.
The recovered items include a locket, a pendant, a ring, and a cross necklace.
Derrick's wedding ring was not found, however.
"Does it almost feel like losing another piece of him?," I asked Williams.
"Yeah, that was his wedding ring, so yeah, it does," Williams said. "This is all we have left of them. That's all we have left is special pieces that were obviously important. Money can't replace it. Money cannot replace this. My son's never going to wear a wedding ring again."
She's not hopeful her son's ring will ever be recovered.
Sunset Memorial confirms it is aware of the situation, saying, "Sunset Memorial Park is proud of its service to our community and the peaceful beauty and serenity the Park offers to our client families and visitors for reflection. Management is working with authorities to determine how a theft occurred at our park and remains committed to maintaining a safe and secure Park for our client families and their possessions. Steps have been taken and plans are already in place to even further enhance our security measures."
While Williams appreciates the extra steps in an effort to prevent theft like this from happening again, she said she doesn't fault the cemetery.
"We never felt unsafe to begin with because who would think somebody would do this. This is as low as you can get. I mean, this is stealing from the dead. It's something you see in movies. You don't think this is gonna happen," Williams said. "The cemetery is also very upset about it because they have family there so they wanna make sure that it's secure. They feel just as violated as we do."
The man accused of stealing from Sunset Memorial is due back in Johnson County, Indiana, court on March 25.
As of Sunday night, the man facing allegations of theft in this case is still on the Johnson County inmate roster.
"This is not an isolated incident. This is not just Sunset Memorial. This could be any cemetery anywhere in this area or really anywhere across the country," Williams said.
Williams' hope is that the person responsible is held accountable. Not only that, but she wants her tragedy to be a tale of caution for others.
"Take a picture of your niches, put those away, put them with your paperwork for your niches or your important papers. If anything ever happens down the road, you'll have that to prove that was in there," Williams said.
If you have any information pertaining to the thefts at Sunset Memorial, contact the Olmsted Township Police Department.
