Man charged in connection with theft of bronze vases from cemetery near Arlington Heights

Cook County authorities have charged a 62-year-old man with felony theft after eight bronze vases were removed from a Jewish cemetery near Arlington Heights last month.

Ronald Kathe, whose last known address is in Glenview, was arrested after the vases were recovered from his vehicle during a traffic stop in Lincolnshire on Nov. 19, the day of the theft. He was charged the following day with one count of theft over $500.

A tracking device on one of the vases had led police to the vehicle.

At about 6 a.m. Nov. 19, staff at Shalom Memorial Park, 1700 W. Rand Road, reported several bronze vases had been taken from grave sites. Security footage showed a man tampering with the grave markers.

When Lincolnshire police pulled Kathe over, it was noted that he matched the description of the man in the video footage. A search warrant for his vehicle was obtained by Cook County sheriff’s police.

At a detention hearing on Nov. 21 in Rolling Meadows, Kathe was ordered released from custody until his next scheduled court appearance. But the judge ordered him to stay away from Shalom Memorial Park and other cemeteries in the meantime.