The graves of Bruce McLaren and some of his family members have been vandalised in New Zealand.
McLaren is buried at West Auckland’s Waikumete Cemetery after being killed in June 1970 testing a CAN-AM car in the United Kingdom, and is buried alongside his wife Patricia, who died in 2016.
This gravestone has been vandalised, along with that of McLaren's parents, with the Bruce McLaren Trust "lost for words" in a statement issued confirming the vandalism.
According to New Zealand outlet Stuff, the damage was first discovered at the end of September by George Stewart-Dalzell of Grave Guardians, who repairs and restores graves at the cemetery.
The headstones of McLaren, his wife and his parents had been covered in gold, with toy cars glued to the top of the grave of Bruce and Patricia.
Moreover, the words "until we meet again Darling" on the stone, which had been blacked out following Patricia's death, had been refilled with gold paint.
A grave belonging to McLaren's sister and brother-in-law had also been bleached.
Even after Stewart-Dalzell began repairs, the vandal is believed to have returned multiple times, even removing a protective wrapping placed over the graves.
Other graves nearby, not related to the McLarens, were also vandalised, although Stuff reports it is believed the people responsible may have been attempting to repair the graves.
"It is with dismay that we need to inform our followers that the graves of Bruce, Patty, Ruth and Pop at Waikumete Cemetery in Auckland have recently been vandalised," read the statement from the Bruce McLaren Trust.
"They have been sprayed with gold paint and had toy cars stuck onto them. We are lost for words as to why anyone would do this.
"A very kind offer has been made by The Grave Guardians, a voluntary organisation that restores headstones to repair the damage, for which we are extremely grateful. While this work is being undertaken, the stones are wrapped and unable to be viewed."
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