By CatholicVote | Created at 2025-01-15 21:51:03 | Updated at 2025-01-16 00:59:53
3 hours ago
CV NEWS FEED // Police have released footage of the man who recently stole a crown worth $30,000 from a statue of Mary at St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Philadelphia.
Made of gold and gems, the crown was crafted by parishioners in 1899 after a fire damaged the church but left the statue of Mary unharmed. The crown was stolen in the early hours of Jan. 11, ABC Action News reported.
The suspected thief was caught on camera scaling a fence and breaking through a stained-glass window built in 1899 to access the church. He was last seen the morning of Jan. 11, entering a Mitsubishi SUV along the 1200 block of Market Street in Philadelphia.
The Philadelphia Police Department is encouraging anyone with information about this incident to reach out to Central Detectives as the investigation progresses.
According to the assistant pastor of St. John, Father John McCloskey, the perpetrator “knew exactly what he was doing,” executing the crime in about 10 minutes total.
“The fact that it’s not there and we don’t know whether it’s coming back” is what makes the loss hard to bear, according to Father Thomas Betz, pastor of St. John. He commended the police department of Philadelphia for their efforts.
“They’re trying very hard to find our crown,” Fr. Betz told ABC Action News, “and I can sense that they really care about this particular crime.”
Despite the damage to the church’s window, which is expected to incur repair costs in the thousands, regularly scheduled Masses are still being held at the church.
