By Tim Binnall
Relatives of people buried in a Dutch graveyard are outraged following revelations that a series of seances were held at the site and some have gone so far as to have the remains of their departed loved ones unearthed and moved to a different location. According to a local media report, the very weird controversy began last autumn when a camera was discovered in the Rusthof cemetery in community of Leusden. The contents of the device showed paranormal investigators conducting a ghost hunt in the graveyard, specifically in an area where children are buried, which led to their families being understandably irate.
It was subsequently determined that the director of the graveyard had actually given permission to a group of "spiritual investigators" to embark on a series of seances at the site in what was described as a "quest for psychic energy." Shortly thereafter, a video of the ghost hunters in action appeared online and their 'research' largely consisted of the standard fare one might see during such an endeavor here in America as the group mostly stood around trying to communicate with the deceased individuals buried at the cemetery by speaking aloud to them. Strangely enough, the cemetery director has since left the job and refuses to reveal the identifies of the paranormal investigators that he let loose on the property.
As one might imagine, many people with loved ones buried at the cemetery are deeply dismayed by the entire affair as they believe that the graves were desecrated during the series of seances. To that end, nine families have even had their relatives exhumed from the graveyard and then reburied somewhere else, which has cost the community of Leusden approximately $160,000. Meanwhile, the imbroglio has spawned a series of investigations on the part of both the local and national government and two families have gone to court in the hopes of forcing the identities of the paranormal investigators to be revealed so that they can confront them personally.