Under the cover of night, thieves worked quickly in search of quick cash, taking as many flat screens, monitors, and pricy electronics as they could grab, said the Rev. Richard Dunn of the Faith Community Baptist Church.
An unholy act at a Miami church has members searching for answers – and some burglars.
"We had three monitors right here – gone, gone, and gone,” the Rev. Richard Dunn said, as he showed the mess left behind after burglars ransacked the Faith Community Baptist Church early Friday.
Under the cover of night, thieves worked quickly in search of quick cash, taking as many flat screens, monitors, and pricy electronics as they could grab, he said.
The senior pastor said the suspects entered the church through the children’s area.
“No respect for the children, no respect for God, no respect for the house of God,” he said.
The burglars also grabbed a safe containing donations, and kicked in doors as they caused damage at the church.
Dunn estimated the church’s loss as at least $20,000.
Less than a week ago, burglars targeted another house of worship – the Ministries Outreach Center in Liberty City, about a mile and a half away. There it was amplifiers and electronics that were stolen last Sunday. The M.O. seems similar, said Dunn, who is a former Miami commissioner.
"Well, there’s been about three in a radius, probably a 2- or 3-mile radius, in the last six months,” he said. “And then there have been a rash of church air conditioners being stolen."
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The pastor believes it makes sense that desperate thieves would look to churches, as many of them count on electronics as tools that help spread the word of God.
More heartbreaking for congregants is the possibility that it’s the very people they aim to help that could have hurt them.
"I can't stop opening doors of the church. They’re not my doors, they belong to God,” Dunn said. “And so we will continue to open the doors to the church. However, we will be more vigilant."
