HONG KONG: Actress and solicitor Mary Jean Reimer has disclosed that the ashes of her late husband, martial artist and filmmaker Lau Kar-leung, were stolen.
In a YouTube broadcast on Nov 3, Reimer revealed that a staff member from Po Fook Hill Cemetery in Sha Tin contacted her between May and August this year to report the theft.
“My first thought was that it had to be a scam. Who would steal a person’s ashes? There weren’t any valuables kept in the urn anyway,” the 61-year-old said.
It was only when the police asked her if Lau’s ashes were kept in two rectangular boxes that Reimer realised the cemetery staff had been telling the truth.
When she asked the employee how they learned about the theft, they revealed that the information came directly from the group of grave robbers responsible.
In August, Reimer visited Po Fook Hill Cemetery with the police and requested that the staff open Lau’s columbarium niche.
Inside, she found the cloth that once wrapped the urn crumpled and pushed aside.
A handwritten note she had left warning grave robbers not to steal the ashes was also missing.
Reimer believes at least three people were involved, noting that the site had been restored so meticulously that cemetery staff had not noticed anything unusual.
She also revealed that, aside from Lau’s ashes, the remains of several other individuals had also been stolen.
“I’ve made many enemies over the years by repeatedly exposing certain issues. Some have spread false statements to tarnish my reputation and even threatened to desecrate the graves of Kar-leung and his late mother,” she explained.
Reimer made it clear she has no intention of paying a ransom if asked to do so. Instead, she plans to use her money to support the living.
“I’d rather honour Kar-leung by supporting people of his age. He passed away at 76, so anyone over 75 can attend a banquet I’m hosting soon for free. I’d rather feed the elderly than pay a ransom,” she said.
Reimer was married to Lau from 1984 up until his death in 2013.
The couple had two daughters together. Reimer is also known for actively campaigning against fake monks begging in Hong Kong and abroad.
© New Straits Times Press (M) Bhd
