The operator of three Montreal-area cemeteries says it has increased security after a series of thefts from the niches where funeral urns are kept.
Mount Royal Commemorative Services said in a news release it is co-operating with police, but encourages people not to place valuable objects in the structures used to house funeral urns, known as columbariums.
The statement comes days after Montreal police arrested two people in connection with a series of jewelry thefts from columbariums.
“When a situation of this nature is brought to our attention, our responsibility is to act quickly, co-operate fully with the authorities, and implement the necessary measures to protect the places where families come to remember their loved ones,” Maxime Jacques, executive director of Mount Royal Commemorative Services said in the release.
According to prosecutors, Laval residents André Diderot Gustave and Christina Loubonakis allegedly stole more than $5,000 worth of jewelry and other items from columbariums in Montreal and elsewhere in Quebec between May 13, 2025, and this May 14.
They are also accused of reselling more than $5,000 of stolen jewelry.
Gustave and Loubonakis, who appeared in a Montreal court last week, face five charges, including theft over $5,000, trafficking in property obtained by crime worth more than $5,000 and breaking and entering with intent to commit a criminal offence.
Mount Royal Commemorative Services, which operates the Mount Royal Cemetery and Funeral Complex, the Hawthorn-Dale Cemetery and Funeral Complex in Pointe-aux-Trembles and the Belvedere Cemetery and Funeral Complex in Senneville, said several cemetery and funeral service leaders from across the Montreal region have worked together to share information with authorities.
“Beyond the objects themselves, these are deeply personal memories for many families, which makes this type of act particularly regrettable. This is why additional security and surveillance measures were implemented promptly within our facilities,” Jacques said.
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