Holy Trinity Church in Hawley
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Vicar baffled after church targeted by thieves
By Tim TonkinJanuary 27, 2012
A VICAR has spoken of his frustration and disbelief at the actions of thieves who attempted to break-in to his church’s safe.
Reverend Martyn Neale, the incumbent at the Holy Trinity Church in Hawley, said he could not understand why anyone would target a church.
He added that while nothing had been taken in the raid, damage caused during the break-in, estimated by police to potentially be several thousand pounds, was still to be accounted for.
Police are still investigating the break-in, which took place sometime between the evening of Sunday January 15 and the early hours of the following morning.
Thieves gained access to the church through the door to the vestry, causing considerable damage in the process, and used power tools in an attempt to crack the church safe.
After failing to break open the safe, the intruders caused chaos in the vestry in what church wardens believe was a fruitless attempt to locate a key, before fleeing the building.
Reverend Neale, who was away at the time of the break-in, said that all repair work had now been completed and that day-to-day life was continuing as normal.
He added that he was left baffled by the actions of those who appeared to believe that a church would be full of riches, and that the most important items secured in churches, parish records and registers, would probably be considered worthless to the average burglar.
He said: “There seem to be people who think that we keep thousands of pounds worth of items in churches, they must not be in touch with reality.
“They imagine that churches are stuffed full with valuables. There are items valuable to us but not a great deal to the world out there. I suspect these things go in cycles and at the moment the amateur criminal community have an idea that churches are places to steal from because of their metals and the fact they have safes in them.”
Since Christmas, a number of churches across the News & Mail area have been targeted by thieves including the Sandhurst and Yateley Methodist Church and Sandhurst Baptist church, where electronic goods were taken.
Reverend Neale said that burglaries from the church were fortunately not a frequent problem, with the last break-in thought to have taken place around 20 years ago. Holy Trinity was however targeted in an arson attack six years ago, with lead being stolen from the church roof last year.
Rita Davies, church warden and member of Holy Trinity Church for the last 20 years, who was the first on the scene following the break-in and reported it to the police, said that she felt that a loss of respect for the institution of the church among some sections of society potentially accounted for places of worship being targeted.
The church is now considering whether to invest in additional security measures
“You can put in security systems and alarms but there is a limit in the end as to whether it is cost effective,” she said.
Anyone with information about the break-in is urged to contact PC Andrew Luchesa by dialling 101. Alternatively contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.
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