Church's Surveillance Video Catches Thief Red-Handed
DENVER, Colo. (CBS4) - Police are asking for the public's help to catch the crook who broke into a Catholic church and stole money for the poor.
Surveillance cameras captured clear images of the burglar, who pried two locked donation boxes off of the walls inside Our Lady of Guadalupe parish on 36th Avenue near Kalamath Street in Denver on June 11.
It's not the first time the church was hit by a thief.
The church installed surveillance cameras approximately one year ago after donation boxes on the outside of the church were taken during the overnight hours while the church was closed.
This time, the thief stole the boxes in broad daylight.
The doors were open for prayer and the sun was shining bright when a burglar went in to the church with dark intentions. He walked past the pews and into a back room where he went straight for the offerings.
"They were torn off the wall," said Rocio Delgado, Liturgy Coordinator for Our Lady of Guadalupe.
Delgado pointed out holes in the marble where donation boxes were mounted. Inside of the boxes was money that church members had collected for the poor.
"It's sad," Delgado said. "When (money) is given in faith, you give it with all your heart. You don't really know what's it's going to be used for, but you know it will be used for something good."
The thief also tried to take money from behind locked glass where a Virgin Mary statue overlooked the room. But neither she, nor the surveillance camera just feet away, could turn him away from temptation.
"It's disconcerting to hear of someone stealing donations from a church," said Doug Schepman, a spokesperson for the Denver Police Department.
Schepman said that police were asking for the public's help to identify the man who was caught on camera.
"Someone out there might recognize him. And we encourage them to give us a call," Schepman said.
Church staff members on Friday were replacing the wooden donation boxes with new metal ones.
Delgado wants the theft to stop.
"We are a church, so we forgive," Delgado said. "But we hope that they understand that they shouldn't be doing that sort of thing to the church or to anyone."
A church employee said that the value of the stolen donation boxes was between $400-$500 each. He said that value was likely much higher than the money that was inside of them.
The church asked for whoever took the donation boxes to bring them back.
Melissa Garcia has been reporting for CBS4 News since March 2014. Find her bio here, follow her on Twitter @MelissaGarciaTV, or send your story idea to mkgarcia@cbs.com.
