BECKLEY, W.Va.— A West Virginia family made a grisly discovery just after Christmas when they found a nearly 95-year-old grave in their family cemetery had been dug up and the Confederate veteran whose body had lain there was missing. 

Saprina Roark said her great-great-grandfather Thomas Meadows, a private in the 36th Virginia Infantry, had survived the Civil War and had once owned hundreds of acres in the Princewick, West Virginia area. Thomas Meadows died in 1921.

The Meadows Family Cemetery is in a quiet location in the woods, half-a-mile from the nearest residence. Roark’s husband, Patrick, said there are about 25 graves in the cemetery and Meadows’ is among the oldest. 

In spite of the remote location, there are ATV trails nearby, he continued. Patrick said there are four-wheeler tracks “all around,” and people ride there frequently. 

Patrick and son Noah investigated, finding the foot stone dislodged from the ground and tossed toward the head of the grave. The grave was about 5 feet deep, Patrick said, and so he took pictures and called the Raleigh County Sheriff’s Office. 

He was told he could fill in the grave after he made the report, but Patrick and Noah did a little more investigating on their own. 

They dug into the loose dirt in the bottom of the grave and while they did not find a casket they did discover the top of Thomas Meadows’ skull, detached from the rest of his skeleton. 

Saprina speculated that the grave robbers thought that he may have had gold fillings, or was buried in his uniform that may have had gold buttons. She said she thinks it was done for the value those historical items might have today.  

“People are so badly on drugs they’re starting to dig people’s graves up,” she said. “I think they’re getting desperate; they were breaking into people’s homes and now they’re starting to dig up people’s graves.” 

But Sheriff Steve Tanner offered another possible motive. Tanner said the grave robbers may be treasure hunters looking for medals or other Confederate memorabilia that have a high market value among collectors. 

“I think it’s a shame,” Patrick said. “You’ve got to be demented in your mind to do something like this. They ought to be tied up to a tree and given 30 lashes.”

According to Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Tom Truman, the penalty for robbing a grave is a determinate sentence of up to five years.

Deputy Sheriff Steven Frey is investigating the case, but has little evidence to go on, since no one can pinpoint a date the grave was disturbed.

Frey said Wednesday that the investigation is ongoing, but he currently has no suspects. 

Pritt writes for the West Virginia Register-Herald.