Family’s fury as heartless vandals desecrate memorial ’It’s just disgusting’
Four times
ON four occasions the grieving family of Dann Jenkins have placed tributes at the side of the road where their son died.
Each time, the memorials have been stolen, ripped from the ground, or tossed in a creek by callous vandals.
The family have even gone to the extreme of hiring a cherry picker to put a memorial in a tree out of reach of thieves.
Dann, 22, died when a ute collided with his motorcycle on Numinbah Rd near Chillingham on October 24. An 87-year-old is facing charges regarding his death.
Dann’s devastated parents and friends placed a tribute for him at the scene of the crash just days after he died. Within 24 hours it was gone.
Another three were ripped from the ground.
“It is just disgusting,” father Garry Jenkins said.
“We want a place to grieve. We want to be left alone to grieve. Every time we go and something has been removed it is a kick in the guts.
“It is the last place our son was alive. This is where we want to remember him.
“We have spoken to the local council, who assure us they have not taken anything.
“In fact, we are quite within our rights to have a cross on the side of the road. We don’t know who is doing this, or why, but it is only adding to our heartache.”
Tweed Shire Council bylaws state that roadside memorials are allowed providing they do not cause danger or obstruct vision for motorists.
Mr Jenkins said the death of his son had been debilitating for himself and his wife.
“He was more than my son, he was my best friend. We rode together, worked together, ate dinner together,” he said.
“I haven’t been able to go back to work yet ... it has just been very hard, on all of us.”
The driver of the ute involved in the crash has been charged with dangerous driving cause death, negligent driving cause death, and not giving way to vehicle. He is due to face Murwillumbah Local Court on March 28.