It was a step Ino Baptist Church administrator Wayne Russell did not want to take, but after last week’s events, the church’s security measures are increasing.
Two burglaries occurred at the large church last week, and money was taken in each incident, Russell said.
In the latest event, thieves took a safe containing about $1,400 late Thursday or early Friday. Law enforcement officers recovered the empty safe from a Covington County creek near Kinston om Saturday, Coffee County Sheriff’s Department Investigator Johnny Knowles said.
In the first break-in, money was taken from an office drawer. Doors to some of the interior offices also were broken in the burglaries, Russell said.
The events have caused church officials to reevaluate security policies. Russell said previous security policies were lax by design due to the church’s rural location.
The church, which seats about 1,200 people in the sanctuary, is about 10 miles from the nearest city.
“When you’re out in the country like this, you’re kind of the community center,” Russell said. “When you increase security, you cut down on people’s freedom, but it’s like our hand’s being forced. We like to be as much of a ministry as possible.”
The exterior doors of the church had no apparent damage, Sheriff’s Department Investigator Sam Redmon said. Russell said many of the church’s doors formerly did not have deadbolt locks, but that is changing now.
The church is also investing in a security system, Russell said.
Ino Baptist has not been the only church in the southern part of the county to have burglaries, as Fairview and Friendship Baptist churches have also sustained damage in break-ins, Sheriff Dave Sutton said.
Sutton said churches have now become targets for thieves due to the lack of visibility and the valuable sound systems in the buildings.
The recent incidents have come shortly after some other rural churches’ air conditioning units were vandalized in numerous copper thefts in April.
“(Thieves) are getting a little bit brazen,” Sutton said. “What we ask is people check the churches near you (often), even if you don’t go to church there.”
Sutton said if county residents check on the churches and alert authorities about any suspicious activities, church burglaries could be curbed.
Russell advised staff members at other rural churches to take even more precautions.
“I recommend talking to security officials and seeing what they recommend,” he said. “You must have deadbolt locks. If you have old keys floating out, definitely remedy that.”
To provide any information on the church burglaries, call the Sheriff’s Department at 334- 894-5535.
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