UNION TOWN -- A 26-year-old Hayward guy is dealing with greater than a dozen criminal vandalism fees after he admitted slathering ONE HUNDRED FIFTY headstones at a Union Town cemetery with vegetable oil -- an act he instructed government was supposed to push back evil spirits.

The Alameda County District Attorney's Place of work charged Deepak Sandhar Singh on Friday with 15 counts of criminal vandalism for defacing the grave markers on the Chapel of the Chimes Memorial Park at 32992 Challenge Blvd. at the Union City-Hayward border.

Singh informed police he purchased a two-gallon jug of soybean oil from a neighborhood marketplace and used it at the steel plates at the headstones as a result of they "had been evil" and had to be purified with oil, police mentioned.

Singh additionally left small plastic figures, items of string and ribbons at a few grave websites and was noticed by grounds keepers transferring plant life among headstones. The broken headstones have been found out Thursday by cemetery staff.

Singh was arrested Friday and brought to Santa Rita Prison in Dublin, the place he published bail, in keeping with jail's web site.

Chapel of the Chimes Normal Supervisor Harry Blakeman mentioned closing week that the headstones had been all wiped clean on Friday. Freshen up prices had been predicted at $5,000, police mentioned.

Blakeman was now not instantly to be had Monday to touch upon the felony charges, however stated final week that it was the one time the cemetery have been vandalized in recent times. In February, thieves stole copper

and brass flower holders from greater than 500 graves on the Cypress Garden Memorial Park in Colma, possibly to recycle them for money.

Anyone with data at the vandalism at Chapel of the Chimes will have to name the Union Town Police Division at 510-471-1365 or go away an nameless tip at 510-675-5207 or tips@unioncity.org.

Kristin J. Bender covers breaking information. Observe her at Twitter.com/kjbender.