On the Beat in Bluffton

Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Burglars targeting county, area churches

Huntington County Sheriff Terry Stoffel is seeking the public’s assistance in solving a string of church burglaries.

Stoffel says that 14 churches in Huntington, Wells, Blackford and Grant counties have been burglarized over the past two months.

Most of the victimized churches have been in rural areas, and the crimes have occurred during the evenings, Stoffel says. The thieves have taken musical instruments and electronics from the buildings. Detectives have no leads on either the identity of the thieves or the whereabouts of the stolen items, he added.

Stoffel is asking community members to report any abnormal activity at rural churches, including people loading up items from a church or unknown people at the church.

Anyone noticing any suspicious activity is asked to call the Huntington County Sheriff’s Department at 356-8316.

“We would certainly appreciate their help in this matter,” Stoffel says.

Two churches in Wells County were broken into recently, and items were reportedly taken in one. Learn more about the county burglaries in the Monday, Jan. 21, News-Banner.

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