For someone, it was a Halloween prank, maybe, that went terribly wrong.
For the family of a Becker crash victim lost 11 years ago, it was a tragic vandalism of their beloved neice’s headstone.
The story, however, ended happily, as an anonymous “angel” repaired the marker, leaving it better than it was before.
That’s the strange tale that transpired in Riverside Cemetery in Monticello over the last 10 days, as Justine Barthel’s grave marker was defaced over Halloween weekend.
Her aunt, Shelley Nyberg, took to Facebook community groups, asking if anyone had seen anything suspicious over the weekend. After 11 years, it was hard for Nyberg to think that anyone would be holding a grudge for more than a decade.
The cemetery itself is city owned. It’s monitored regularly, but there aren’t cameras on the property, which rests on a bluff near the Mississippi River.
Which is why when someone took the time to remove the markings covering Justine’s face, no one caught that, either.
The full story is here, shared by KARE 11, the NBC affiliate in the Twin Cities.