NORWALK : 2 Teen-Agers Plead Guilty to Hate Crime
Two teen-agers whom authorities say are members of a racist skinhead gang have pleaded guilty to vandalizing a Jewish cemetery in Norwalk.
The pair were involved in a destructive spree Dec. 21 that left 39 of the 200 tombstones at the Chevra Kadisha Mortuary on Curtis & King Road in piles of marble and granite rubble. Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department deputies estimated damage at $50,000.
Ian Edward Clasby, 18, pleaded guilty in Downey Municipal Court to destroying cemetery property and committing a hate crime, both felonies. Prosecutors said they expect him to receive a two-year term when sentenced Feb. 9.
Clasby’s 16-year-old accomplice confessed to similar charges last week in Los Padrinos Juvenile Court in Downey and will serve nine to 12 months in a youth camp for juvenile offenders, said James Hickey, a deputy district attorney.
The younger boy was caught as he attempted to leave the cemetery. Clasby was arrested about a week later. Sheriff’s deputies believe the pair used a crowbar to pry loose some grave stones. Other stones were pushed over.
Clasby and the boy are members of a Norwalk gang of skinheads, said detective Richard Hiles of the Norwalk sheriff’s station.
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