Families reunited with ashes stolen from Eindhoven crematorium

The police identified ash remains found with a 22-year-old Eindhoven man suspected of grave robbing. Four families will soon be reunited with the ashes of their loved ones. The urns were stolen from the Rijtackers crematorium in Eindhoven, Omroep Brabant reports.

"We have determined for four families that the ashes found are their loved ones and we are going to return these, in collaboration with the Rijtackers crematorium", a police spokesperson said to the broadcaster.

The 22-year-old man from Eindhoven is suspected of opening a child's grave and partially opening another grave at a cemetery in Veldhoven, stealing items from the open grave, and stealing urns from the crematorium in Eindhoven.

The suspect was arrested last week and is still in custody. He will appear in court for a pro-forma hearing next week, during which a judge will decide whether or not to extend his pre-trail custody.

So far the police and Public Prosecution have been reluctant to provide details about the suspect's motives and exactly what he is suspected of stealing. It is also not clear how the police managed to identify the ashes.