Church hall damaged in attempted burglary

Church hall damaged in attempted burglary

25 July 2018

THE site of one of Ireland’s oldest churches where St Patrick is reputed to have delivered his first sermon in Ireland has been targeted by burglars.

Thieves recently forced their way into a hall beside the historic St Patrick’s Church at Saul in a search for cash but were forced to flee empty-handed.

The incident — which has been roundly condemned — took place some time last week with the local church the latest to be targeted by criminals in the Down area.

The Dean of Down, the Very Rev Henry Hull, rector at St Patrick’s Church which is visited by thousands of tourists each year, said it was “deeply disappointing” that burglars were targeting church property.

He said the vandalism was bound to have given a bad impression to 40 Italian tourists who were visiting the famous church, which is on Ireland’s tourist trail, when police arrived to investigate the break-in at the nearby hall.

Mr Hull said criminals must realise few churches store money and revealed that the burglars in Saul found little more than a tin of biscuits.

He continued: “They knew what they were doing and smashed the locks right through to get in to the hall and tried to force in the main church door.

“Clearly, they were looking for money as there was a data projector and other items that they did not touch. They rummaged in a cupboard where there was a tin of biscuits and nothing else.”

The Dean said the church is open to visitors every day and has no idea why they tried to break in when it was closed.

He added: “Saul church is very much on the tourist trail and this is not a good impression for tourists to take away with them. There have been a number of break-ins at local churches over recent weeks and this is all very disappointing. No church keeps money on the property.”

The incident has also been condemned by Downpatrick councillor Dermot Curran, who described all church property as “sacrosanct.” He has appealed to anyone who can help police apprehend those responsible to get in touch.

“It is disappointing that we have people who will target church property. There was two recent incidents at a church in Kilmore and now we find the site of one if Ireland’s oldest churches has been targeted. Such behaviour simply beggars belief,” he added.

Also this week, police have unveiled details of a disturbing incident last Saturday at Kilclief graveyard located at the Bishopscourt Road outside Downpatrick.

A woman who had been in the graveyard returned to her vehicle, a blue coloured Toyota Aygo, to find a window had been broken and her handbag stolen.

The incident is believed to have happened between 2pm and 2.40pm. While the handbag was later recovered, a significant sum of money was missing.

The incident has prompted police to warn people not to leave valuables on display in cars which are unattended, with officers issuing an appeal for information in relation to the incidents at Saul church and Kilclief graveyard.

Anyone who believes they can help is asked to contact police using the non-emergency 101 number, while information can be passed anonymously using the confidential Crimestoppers number 0800 555111.

People with information about the incident at St Patrick’s Church are urged to use the reference number 557 of 18/07/18, while the number for the Kilclief theft is 797 of 21/07/18.