St. Mary’s Anglican Church has recently fallen victim to a spate of robberies.
According to Rev. Magda Brits, the church was broken into last year and there have been three different incidents in which cell phones were grabbed from churchgoers this year alone.
‘This seems to happen mainly after a service but, on one occasion, the phone was grabbed when a man went outside to answer his phone during a service,’ said Brits.
According to her, these criminals seem to prey on vulnerable people at the church.
Rob Trautmann, a lay minister at the church, says the suspects broke down the door and the security gate to gain access to the church in November. ‘Most of the things that were stolen are over 100 years old,’ he said. These include a silver chalice which is almost 150 years old, a thurible and a Bible stand. Many of these items have been part of the church since its inception.
‘The insurance company has given a replacement value but these things are actually irreplaceable,’ he said. According to the church’s website, the first version of the church was built in 1867.
Trautmann says the church is in the process of setting up a security system but Rev. Brits believes the ideal situation would be for the police to be more visible in the area.
The neighbourhood in which the church is situated has deteriorated in recent years and some buildings in close proximity to the church have become a haven for drug addicts.