POLICE have been called out to crimes at the district’s cemeteries more than 140 times in the past five years,  the T&A can exclusively reveal today.

Recorded incidents include arson, child sex abuse, robbery, and drug trafficking.

The cemeteries most hit by criminals are Scholemoor Cemetery in Lidget Green, where there were 36 recorded crimes between 2011 and 2016 and Bowling Cemetery, where there were 35 crimes.

Figures exclusively obtained by the Telegraph & Argus from West Yorkshire Police through the Freedom of Information Act show that last year police recorded 24 crimes in cemeteries and burial grounds throughout the district.

EDITOR'S COMMENT: We should all feel disgust at these crimes

In 2015 there were 26, in 2014 there were 32. There were 20 in 2013, 20 in 2012 and 18 in 2011.

After Scholemoor and Bowling Cemeteries, the sites with the most recorded crimes were Undercliffe Cemetery, with seven, and North Bierley, also with seven. There were four incidents in Nab Wood cemetery in Shipley.

In the five year period there were 74 incidents recorded as thefts across all the cemeteries, including thefts from vehicles and theft from a person.

Some of the crimes that took place last year were an assault in Bowling Cemetery and the theft of a bicycle at North Bierley Cemetery.

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The most serious incidents in the past five years include a sexual assault of a child in Scholemoor Cemetery in 2011, of which there was an arrest, a person arrested for possession of a firearm in the same cemetery in 2015, a series of robberies in Bowling Cemetery in 2013, and a case of exposure and voyeurism in Undercliffe Cemetery in 2013.

There was another sexual assault of a female child in Undercliffe cemetery in 2011, which also led to an arrest and an incident of drug trafficking there in 2014.

Overall 23 people were arrested for crimes in cemeteries in this period.

Bradford Council manages 24 cemeteries across the district. The FOI request was only for council run cemeteries and does not include church yards.

Adil Shaan, who helped set up the Friends of the Deceased - a group that was formed to help maintain Scholemoor cemetery - said: “The main issue we seem to have is fly-tipping.

“But you also get a lot of vandalism. You see headstones damaged and plants pulled up. One of my friends told me flowers were taken from a grave just a week ago.

“Crime happening in a place like this is wrong, and needs to be stopped.

“When people visit a cemetery they can be going through a very tough time. We don’t want people thinking twice about visiting a grave of a loved one. They should be allowed to rest in peace.”

He said although there were CCTV cameras installed at the site, they were not currently operational.

Mr Shaan added: “It is about time we invested in some more CCTV here. The system is in place, it just needs to get running again.

“I’d hope that would take crime down a bit.”

Councillor Joanne Dodds (Lab) who represents the Great Horton Ward that Scholemoor Cemetery lies within, said constituents regularly raised concerns about crime and anti-social behaviour there.

She said: “When people visit these places they are usually quite emotional or going through a difficult time.

“To for them to have to put up with crime during this time is awful.

“As a local councillor I get a lot of reports from local people who live near the cemetery telling me of drinking, of drug taking, fly-tipping and vandalism.

“I just can’t believe people do things like this there. I guess it is because it is a secluded place.

“It must be so distressing for someone visiting the cemetery to come across crime. It is a lack of respect.

“But we do have some really dedicated groups who are helping make our cemeteries a better place.”

Allan Hillary, chairman of the Friends of Undercliffe Cemetery, a group based at an on-site lodge, said the crime figures showed a lack of respect by some for the district’s cemeteries.

Undercliffe opened in 1854, contains 23,000 graves and holds a total of 124,000 burials. It is considered one of the finest graveyards in the country, and regularly hosts tours and other events.

Mr Hillary said: “There ought to be a lot more reverence shown to cemeteries. They should be respected.

“I think it is awful. My feeling is why can’t people see that these are places to be respected. It could be your grandparents or relatives that are buried here. Would you want it to happen where your family is buried?

“I can’t understand why people don’t respect our cemeteries.

“Luckily at Undercliffe Cemetery we have had relatively few incidents over the last few years, but we used to have a lot of trouble with drug pushing here.

“The fundamental thing is cemeteries need to have good security. We have staff and volunteers on site quite a lot, and we encourage dog walkers here, so these are all extra pairs of eyes to stop trouble.”

Councillor Hassan Khan (Lab), who represents the Bowling and Barkerend ward, was shocked by the number of crimes happening in Bowling Cemetery.

He said: “It is shameful that people are doing things like this in a place like a cemetery.

“In every religion people have respect for the graveyard, and I would like to say to people who are going to cemeteries to do things like this to please stop. They may end up buried there one day.

“When people go to cemeteries they are in a very emotional, sensitive place, and relatives don’t want to see any mess or trouble happening where their families are buried.

“When you hear about these crimes it is such a shame, it is not right. Have some respect for the community and the people buried there.”

One of the examples of criminal damage occurred in May 2014 when a stained glass window built into the headstone of mother-of-four Dot Broadbent, buried at Bowling Cemetery, was smashed.

And in February that year police began an investigation after two people were spotted attempting to steal gravestones at Utley Cemetery in Keighley.

In July 2015 a 19-year-old was spoken to by police after riding a motorbike around Bingley Cemetery.

In November 2014 Bradford Crown Court heard how a driver had driven through Scholemoor Cemetery at speeds of up to 50mph during a police chase in 2013.

Even more rural facilities have been hit by crime - there were two thefts at Wilsden Cemetery last year.

In the summer of 2014 crime got so bad in Bowling Cemetery that Bradford Council submitted planning permission to demolish a former chapel on the site, after claims it had become a magnet for criminal and anti social behaviour. The derelict, Grade II listed, building has been vacant since the late 1980s, and the application said: “Bowling Cemetery and its chapel have been subject to persistent and serious crime and anti-social behaviour.”

The plans were later withdrawn after numerous objections.

The Telegraph & Argus invited Bradford Council to comment but no response was received before deadline.

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