9:49am Thursday 18th October 2007
By Kevin Barnes
Remembrance Day will be even more solemn next month after a thief dishonoured the fallen by plundering stones from Carshalton War Memorial.
Veterans may now suffer the indignity of laying wreaths at the dilapidated base of the cenotaph which has stood for 80 years in testament to the sacrifices of local servicemen.
Although Sutton Council is searching for replacement York stone slabs, it is not thought repairs - which may cost thousands of pounds - will be completed by November 11.
The desecration at Carshalton Ponds shocked community leaders and former soldiers who united this week in denouncing the culprit.
Bob Stoddart, 83, chairman of the Carshalton branch of the Royal Naval Association, said: "It is truly disgusting. I didn't believe people could stoop that low.
"When I was in school we looked up to the veterans of the First World War. If they catch the thief they should tie him to a mast, administer 50 lashes and then pour salt on him."
Councillor John Kennedy, chairman of the Carshalton and Clockhouse local committee, said the act had earned "the condemnation of all the people of this borough."
He added: "The memorial to the war dead of this town is to be treated with respect and the souls of those who sacrificed all they had should be left to rest in peace."
Detectives investigating the theft arrested a 22-year-old man at the site last Wednesday. He has since been released on police bail pending further enquiries.
The motive remains unclear but military monuments are increasingly being stolen by thieves who sell them as garden sculptures or for use in kitchen floors.
The value of the missing fine-grained sandstone slabs is underlined by the restoration problems facing Sutton Council.
A spokeswoman said: "We are trying hard to replace the stolen paving by Remembrance Day.
"However, it is difficult to source that particular type of high-quality genuine York stone paving, and we don't want to replace it with inappropriate material."
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