Suspect in Tilton crypt theft charged

TILTON — Police have charged Fred Cross of Northfield in the April incident at a town cemetery where the Tilton family mausoleum was broken into and brass objects taken from the burial site.

Cross, 53, who goes by “Cricket,” was arrested and booked at 7 p.m. on Friday into the Belknap County House of Corrections, according to jail records. Cross is charged with felonies including criminal mischief, theft and interference with a cemetery or burial ground. He is held without bail.

Cross is accused of breaking into the Tilton family crypt at some point the night of April 15, and stealing ornate brass bars, knobs handles and other hardware.

Tilton police served search warrants in Ashland and Northfield that led to the recovery of brass items believed to be those taken from the cemetery, along with over $100,000 of construction equipment reported stolen from Concord and Ashland and a stolen 9mm handgun, according to a police press release. 

Officers also recovered a decorative brass ring which had been reported stolen from a chandelier located at the Tilton Mansion last spring. 

The press release stated authorities anticipate filing additional charges against Cross. 

Police could not divulge if all missing brass fixtures were recovered or what stolen construction equipment was found, citing an ongoing investigation. 

The family mausoleum, located atop the tallest hill in the older portion of Park Cemetery in Tilton, was erected to house the remains of the family which founded the town. Cemetery Sexton Paul Tierney discovered the vandalism when making his morning rounds of the property.

The vandalism resulted in the exposure of the casket of Joy Tilton, who previously served in the New Hampshire State House of Representatives. Tilton died in 2020 at age 85.

Tierney at the time said the culprit cut the bars off a brass door gate using power tools and removed brass hinges and the door, which was also stolen. Upon gaining access to the inner portion of the mausoleum, the thief broke brass and rock plate covers off each slot and stole the brass knobs and handles from those as well.

Solid granite portions of the tomb were damaged and removed, resulting in the exposure of the casket. The coffins and bodies inside the mausoleum were not disturbed.

The decorative ring recovered was identified as one from a 162-year-old light fixture stolen from the Tilton Mansion at the Tilton School. The fixture was quickly recovered days later by night security guard Brent Walterscheid.

The Ashland, Northfield and Concord police departments assisted Tilton police in the investigation and recovery, according to the release.

Anyone with additional information about the incident is encouraged to contact detectives at the Tilton Police Department at 603-286-4442.