Story By: Ernest Bio Bogore, Sub-Editor: Joseph Golder, Agency: Newsflash
A man who vandalised a church by defecating, urinating, and spitting inside it before throwing the crucifix from the altar at the organ has been located after a shocked priest posted his image on Facebook.
The vandalism took place at the church of Saint Sixtus II in the town of Perols, near the southern French city of Montpellier in the Herault department, on 20th September at about 1.15 pm.
Father Herve Dussel, the priest of the church, told local news channel France Bleu Herault: “The vandal defecated then urinated and finally spat on the priest’s seat. He threw the cross from the altar.”
The priest also said that the suspect, whose name has not been revealed, but who is said to be a homeless man, “set fire to some song sheets which burnt a table and part of a bench.”
Father Herve Dussel said that the vandal tried to set fire to some fabric but, as it was fireproof fabric, it did not take. He even reportedly used crumpled paper to burn the fabric but in vain.
The priest said: “And finally, he took the cross from the altar and threw it towards the organ.”
Before entering the church and doing his deed, the man had been spotted drinking in a bar. This makes Father Herve Dussel think that the vandal is not “an unbalanced person but rather someone who acted methodically.”
Netizen ‘Andre de Gimeaux’ commented: “I don’t believe in any god, but there must be a minimum of respect […].”
According to French newspaper Midi Libre, the individual was arrested and handed over to the national police after he tried to steal goods from an Auchan supermarket.
It was a police officer, a member of the Clermont-l’Herault parish, who established the link between the man in police custody and the suspect whose photo was published by Father Dussel on the Facebook page of the Stella Maris parish.
It is unclear if the suspect has been charged.
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