Thieves have targeted the grave of a Moray teenager – for the fourth time since his death in March.
Keiran McKandie’s parents were devastated yesterday when they realised the trinkets from his graveside at Pluscarden Cemetery had once again been stolen.
The 16-year-old died in March after being hit by a car while mountain biking on the outskirts of Elgin.
Yesterday, his mother Sandra, said she feared the family had become victims of a “personal vendetta”.
Four solar lights which were placed around Keiran’s resting place were taken between 2.30pm on Sunday and 11.10am yesterday. It comes just six weeks after thieves previously targeted the grave.
Mrs McKandie visits the cemetery every day, and said she knew something wrong as soon as she got there yesterday.
She said: “I just don’t understand it at all, Keiran had no enemies and the cemetery is so remote that someone must have driven there to do this.
“It is totally disrespectful and very distressing for us, they are violating his place of rest.
“There are no words for it, we just want Keiran to be left in peace.”
The teenager’s grave was first targeted at the beginning of June when a glow-in-the-dark hedgehog mascot placed there by Keiran’s former primary school at Mosstowie was snatched, along with a wind chime left by his family.
His parents replaced the hedgehog ornament the following month, but the second one was stolen too.
In August, four solar lights were taken – but the family did not make public the details of the theft in an effort to prevent repeat occurences.
However, after the four replacement lights were stolen, Mrs McKandie is now appealing for help to stop the thefts.
She said: “We didn’t mention it to anyone other than the police when the lights were stolen last month.
“We thought that might make it stop, but it hasn’t.
“This can’t go on, we just hope somebody knows who is doing this and tells the police.”
Officers have confirmed that inquiries into the thefts are ongoing.