BONES and skulls were found scattered around after young vandals unearthed remains in a disused cemetery.

The vandals wrecked a 150-year-old family vault in the overgrown Machpelah Baptist Cemetery in Hyndburn Road, Accrington.

Complaints of remains scattered around alerted Hyndburn’s health department and immediately the local authority applied for a Home Office exhumation order.

At dawn, council workmen screened off the vault and the remains of six bodies were removed.

They were taken to Accrington Cemetery for cremation.

George Greenwood, Hyndburn’s chief environmental health officer, said: “The tomb has been badly desecrated and we feel it is probably older children playing sick games.

“They have ripped the stone from the front and other stones from the side of the vault. They have gone down the steps, broken the metal door and have even broken into the separate compartments inside the vault.

“It was a real mess inside. Obviously, some coffins had disintegrated, but two lead-lined ones had been ripped open.

“It is a real shame.”