Harris County deputies arrest woman accused of mausoleum theft at cemetery
Deputies arrested 37-year-old Renee Amber Fennel after video tied her to a mausoleum theft at Memorial Oaks Cemetery, where a toddler was seen with her.
Harris County Precinct 5 deputies arrested 37-year-old Renee Amber Fennel at her home in Conroe in connection with a theft inside a mausoleum at Memorial Oaks Funeral Home and Cemetery in west Houston. Investigators pieced together the June 6 break-in, and the child seen with her in the video was later turned over to a family member.
The video showed a woman walking into the cemetery with a toddler following behind her, then opening glass cremation niches and using tools to pry open the casings. Charging documents accuse Fennel of burglarizing the funeral home and cemetery along the Katy Freeway near Dairy Ashford and Eldridge and taking items from two mausoleums, including three gold mahjong pieces, a rosary and a silver cross. Jewelry, gold bars and rings were missing from the site.
The stolen items belonged to the family of former Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Deputy Marcelo Esteban Garcia, and his relatives said a rosary and necklace were taken. Precinct 5 investigators also believed at least three niches were targeted between late May and June 6.
Officials do not yet know how Fennel gained access to the mausoleum area. The arrest happened in Conroe, about 40 miles from Houston, after Precinct 5’s public appeal for help identifying the suspect drew attention to the surveillance footage.
The Harris County Precinct 5 Constable’s Office linked the investigation to Fennel’s arrest and additional questioning by the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office over alleged crimes there.
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