THE heartbroken parents of tragic Dana Baker, the 16-year-old from Wolverley who committed suicide after being sexually abused by a karate instructor, have spoken of their pain of seeing her grave repeatedly plundered and vandalised.

Patricia and Trevor Baker, now living in Cradley Heath, dread visiting their daughter's grave after a sustained campaign of vandalism and thefts at Rowley Regis Cemetery and Crematorium.

A statue of an angel, flowers, teddy bears, solar lights, personalised trinkets, family plaques and even an Easter egg have been stolen from Dana’s grave.

Mrs Baker said: "How sick do people have to be to do this to a grave of a child?

"The statues and stone plaques all had Dana's name on them so what use would they be to anyone who stole them?"

She added: "The latest thefts has made it even harder for us to go and visit the grave which is something no parent should have to go through.

"These people must know the pain they are causing, they even took an Easter egg out of a box left at the grave and must have eaten it.

"How can we even think about putting Christmas presents or cards on the grave because they will get stolen too."

Mrs Baker also revealed Dana's grave is not the only one to be targeted by vandals and thieves at the Powke Lane cemetery.

She said: "There has been several attacks on gravestones, all at the top of the cemetery where Dana is buried. We have begged the council to do something but we go three or four times a week and never see a warden patrolling."

Cradley Heath and Old Hill Councillor Ann Shackleton is disgusted by the spate of vandalism in the flagship cemetery - which is currently undergoing a multi-million pound revamp.

She said: "Our thoughts are with the families who have been devastated by this awful vandalism, I really am speechless this kind of vandalism has occurred.

"I will be contacting council officers about this problem as something has to be done."

Deputy leader of Sandwell Council, Councillor Mahboob Hussain, has promised action over the vandalism.

He said: "Over the last week we have received two reports of some items being stolen from two graves at Rowley Regis Cemetery and Crematorium.

He added: "These types of incidents are very rare but are obviously deeply upsetting to the families concerned.

"We have asked the team based in the cemetery to be vigilant and report any suspicious behaviour."

He added: "We have also arranged for our warden service who secure all our cemeteries and crematoria on a daily basis to undertake extra patrols at night and of a weekend over the next few weeks."

Stourport High School and VIth Form Centre A level student Dana, who originally lived with her parents in Hayes Road, Wolverley, was found hanging from a tree near the Worcester Road island in Kidderminster on March 3, 2011.

Her death sent shockwaves through Worcestershire Social Services as she was in foster care at the time of her suicide.

Worcestershire Senior Coroner Geraint Williams said there were failures at ‘every level’ of Worcestershire County Council’s children’s services and simple steps were not taken to protect Dana who had already attempted suicide after being sexually abused by her karate instructor Jaspal Riat.