The police are investigating why someone broke into a 100-year-old crypt and stole parts of a dug-up body

• Police say someone entered a Colorado cemetery at night and broke into a 100-year-old crypt.
• Officers found "severe damage" to the crypt and a casket inside.

Police are investigating the theft of body parts from a 100-year-old private mausoleum in Wheat Ridge, Colorado.

Officers from the Jefferson County Sheriff's Department arrived at the Crown Hill Cemetery on Wednesday morning and found a private mausoleum had suffered "severe damage," per a police statement.

"It appears unknown suspects entered the cemetery during the overnight hours, forced entry into the crypt, and gained access to the casket," the department wrote in its Wednesday statement.

A casket was "pried open," and parts of the body inside were taken, the statement added.

The mausoleum contained three crypts and is owned by the same family, but only one crypt inside — in the center — was damaged, public information officer Jacki Kelley told the Los Angeles Times.

The bodies in the mausoleum were buried in the early 20th century, the LA Times reported.

The suspects could potentially face felony charges such as abuse of a corpse and third-degree burglary, Kelley told the outlet.

"A thorough search of the area was completed, and the crime scene was processed for evidence," the police statement said.

The Jefferson County Sheriff's Department did not respond to a request for comment sent outside regular business hours.