SAN ANTONIO — Nikki Kennedy said a suspected thief took decorations and toys from her daughter’s grave at a south-side cemetery.
The heartbroken mother put up cameras next to the tombstone. She said this has happened at least four times. She said the latest incident happened this month, and it was caught on camera. Kennedy was working with police to catch the suspects.
Now, an affidavit reveals that 56-year-old Joe Molina Gonzales has been accused of stealing the toys from the grave site. He reportedly took the items and put them under his jacket.
Kennedy has been visiting her daughter at San Jose Burial Park every day.
“I haven’t gotten ready to let her go,” she said. “I just feel like this is my daughter’s area now. This is her little garden. I just want it to look nice.”
Right before Easter she said the man stole décor she placed around her daughter’s grave. Her daughter known as Dina, in 2019, died of cancer at 4 years old. The mom said Dina had stage four neuroblastoma cancer.
“This is my daughter,” she said. “Of course, it makes me upset and angry. “What in the right mind makes you think, let me go to the cemetery and takes somebody stuff. What could you possibly do with those little items,” she said.
Kennedy had told KENS 5 that she had turned over the surveillance video to police, and she also had this as a warning.
“Never think there is no eyes on my daughter,” she said. “There are eyes on her at all times.”
Now, the affidavit reads that this suspect seen in the video does appear to be Gonzales. He is also accused of stealing toys from another grave in the same cemetery, putting them in his backpack.