Untitled

Press, 4 March 1978, Page 8

Inhabitants of the village above Geneva where Chaplin spent the last 25 years of his life, said it was a mysitery how the thieves managed to go unnoticed as they dug up the grave, hauled up the heavy oak coffin, dragged it to a waiting vehicle, and drove off.

The police believed the coffin and body were stolen early Thursday morning. This would have given the thieves plenty of time to make their getaway. By driving down to the GenevaMontreux motorway, they could have been in France within half an hour or in Italy within three hours, the police said. The family spokesman at the 18-room, nineteenth century Chaplin mansion said of Lady Chaplin: “She is very shocked. We all are.” Lady Chaplin, daughter of the American playwright, Eugene O’Neill, lives in the mansion with the two youngest Chaplain children Christopher, aged 15, and Annette, aged 18. The comedian’s empty grave was covered over by the police last night and a I dozen clusters of flowers were replaced on top. I The police took away the ; grave’s small wooden cross, iwith the simple inscription “Charlie Chaplin,” for I fingerprint examination. I