Jun 19, 2009 10:55 pm US/Eastern
Police Probe Mercer County Church Burglaries
WEST MIDDLESEX (KDKA) ―
Police are investigating a rash of church burglaries in Mercer County.
It started with three burglaries Wednesday night into Thursday morning but as calls continue to come in to the Southwest Mercer County Regional police, it now appears that as many as 17 churches in the Shenango Valley have been robbed this week.
The burglars left little visible evidence outside of the church buildings. Police say that in the worst cases they broke windows to gain entry and exited through the front doors, but they did not vandalize the churches.
Dennis Shacklock, president of the trustees at the Presbyterian Church of West Middlesex, says he still can't figure out how robbers got into his church Wednesday night.
"We didn't find anyplace where they broke in. We didn't find any unlocked doors. We don't know how they got in yet and well they went through the secretary's office. We had a fire safe and they ransacked that," he explained.
The thieves did manage to get away with about $60 they found in the church offices, but police say they didn't take any large objects or precious metals from the church itself.
It appears they were just looking for cash.
The Wheatland-Farrell United Methodist Church, broken into six weeks ago and the Friendship Baptist Church of Farrell, are among the churches hit.
Elouise Brodie has lived next to the Friendship Baptist Church for 40 years and says they've never had a problem with burglars in the area.
"For years I would go up to the mall and would never even lock the door, but things change. Young people, people are out of work. I don't know what's going on. I just can't believe it," she said.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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