Severe damage was inflicted upon a marble headstone and slab in the Methodist section of the cemetery.

It is believed a crowbar was used in an attempt to pry the marble slab away from the grave memorial.

The slab itself has been visibly shifted, exposing parts of the grave itself, whilst damage was also inflicted upon the base of the headstone. 

Sydney resident Joy Smith has close ties to the memorial in question and was notified by a relative in Young on Wednesday morning.

Mrs Smith was extremely disappointed and upset with the incident.

“I know that vandalism can occur but this is just wrong,” she said.

“My parents were buried there and this is completely unacceptable.”

This is not the first instance of vandalism at Murrumbarrah cemetery.

Local resident Tania Thurlow has experienced graveyard defacement and theft firsthand and said the issue was an ongoing problem.

“It just makes us sick,” she said.

“My brother Glenn's (Thurlow) grave had a dragon statue stolen back in 2007.

“The statue was returned after the Express did a story on it, so it must have been someone local.”

Ms Thurlow said other items such as solar lights and memorial tokens have also disappeared from her brother’s grave.

“Small cars and other mementos of his life have been stolen too,” she said.

“It is so disrespectful in a small town where everyone knows each other.”

Cootamundra local area command crime manager Detective Inspector Scott Wilkinson said investigations were under way and urged people to contact police with any information.

"We would encourage people to report incidents such as this directly to police," he said.