LAFAYETTE, Calif., June 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- A family is
demanding a StoneMor California cemetery take back a $3.2-million mausoleum once containing their
son's ashes.
The family of technology pioneer and Commerce One founder,
Thomas Gonzales II, says pure
negligence allowed thieves to plunder the family's mausoleum at the
Oakmont Memorial Park Cemetery in Lafayette, Calif., in January of 2011 and
steal an urn containing Gonzales' remains.
Thieves walked off with the remains only days after an initial
break-in attempt went unreported by the cemetery to police.
Now the $3.2-million marble
mausoleum in the Lafayette
cemetery stands empty with only broken glass on the floor—relatives
say it's a cold reminder of their son's tragic and untimely loss.
Gonzales died on Dec. 5, 2001 at the
age of 35, after an eight-month battle with gastric cancer.
The Gonzales family poured four years and multi-millions into
the design and custom-build of a white marble mausoleum befitting
their son's memory.
"Now, the mausoleum has no value to my family," said Gonzales'
father, Tom Gonzales, Sr. "The sight
of it causes my family so much pain and suffering we think it's
only right for Oakmont to be held accountable."
The family sued StoneMor California, a division of StonMor
Partners LP (NYSE:STON), on June 12,
2012 for a minimum of $3.2
million (Case No. C12-01384), accusing the national cemetery
operator of negligently allowing thieves to walk off with their
son's remains and for failing to alert the family of a previous
security breach.
Days prior to the January 16, 2011
theft, a groundskeeper at the Oakmont Cemetery noticed damage to
the mausoleum's steel frame doors. Yet, no one from Oakmont
cemetery notified the Gonzales family.
Three days later, thieves once again broke onto the property and
stole the bronze urn containing Gonzales' remains. Police never
recovered the ashes, despite a full-scale investigation and a large
reward, which the family still is offering today.
"The sheer lack of regard for the Gonzales family and the
unconscionable negligence of the StoneMor operators has led to this
tragic theft," said Gonzales family attorney Harvey Stein of Oakland.
"No monetary value will be enough to compensate the family for
the pain caused by this tragedy. The sadness of Thomas's early
death is only compounded by the desecration of his tomb," he
added.
Gonzales and his father co-founded Commerce One Inc., a
pioneering Internet company in Pleasanton that became one of the
fastest-growing firms in Nasdaq history.
Photos of mausoleum and cemetery map provided upon request.
Contact: Sam Singer or
Alex Doniach
Phone: 415.227.9700
Email: Singer@SingerSF.com
SOURCE Gonzales Family