THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1996, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, January 11, 1996 TAG: 9601090099
SECTION: NORFOLK COMPASS PAGE: 02 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY LARRY W. BROWN, STAFF WRITER
LENGTH: Short : 49 lines
For worshipers at the Wesley Memorial United Methodist Church, 1995 ended in a devastating mystery, one still awaiting a solution.
The church, located in the 200 block of East Little Creek Road near Wards Corner, was burglarized four times in December. The thieves, still at large late last week, lifted more than $3,000 of electronic equipment.
``The church is very angry, disgusted,'' the Rev. William Amon said. ``It's real bad that we've built up everything here and tried to keep the facilities in good condition. It's real aggravating.''
The thefts began the night of Dec. 2, twice on another night and again near the end of the month. The stolen items included amplifiers, microphones, speakers, a videocassette recorder and cassette tapes, a radio and a sewing machine.
Telephone lines and wires connected to a small alarm system also were ripped from the building's walls.
``There's a lot of vandalism damage,'' Amon said. ``Our doors and windows have to be replaced. They just wiped us out completely.''
At least 21 windows were broken, and someone spray-painted graffiti throughout the building.
``So far they have not gone into the main sanctuary,'' he said. ``But we think they tried to get into it.''
Wesley Memorial was built in the 1800s when it was first known as the old Denbigh Church. Wesley's congregation later merged with a Brambleton Avenue congregation in 1948. The latest renovations to the building were made in the mid-1960s.
Amon said the police were contacted, and the church is waiting to hear word on an investigation.
The crimes have left the 600-plus members wondering who would want to steal from a church, Amon said. No one had broken into the building for at least five years, said Amon, who has been minister there since June.
The next step - besides finding the culprits - will be repairing the thousands of dollars in damages and installing an upgraded security system, he said.
``Our people are just determined to build back, just determined,'' he said.
KEYWORDS: CHURCH VANDALISM by CNB