Sacred Objects stolen from Church in Guttaring

Case information
Incident date
Country
Austria
Place
Guttaring
Categories
  • Social Hostility / Intolerance
Attack Against
  • Faith
Perpetrator / Motive Indicators
  • Private
Hate Crime & Violent Incidents
  • Theft
Place of Incident
  • Church
Bias Indicators
  • Significance of Property/Structure/Location to religious community
  • Victim/Witness Perception
Reported to Police
  • Yes
Response of Local Authorities
  • Investigated
Image credit: Wiki Commons

On the night of November 20, unknown perpetrators broke into the pilgrimage church in Guttaring. They stole gold crowns, gold and silver chains that were connected to a picture of Mary. Furthermore, the locked altar area was broken into and religious objects were stolen from the altar. The cost of the damage is unknown and the police are investigating the situation further.

Pastor Lawrence Pinto, Dechant von Krappfeld and pastor of the pilgrimage church until a few months ago expressed his grief for this loss for the whole community: "I am deeply affected as a dechant. The image of Mary is several hundred years old. The objects that were stolen are votive gifts donated by pilgrims out of gratitude." He also said that the peace of the pilgrimage church, which is very popular with believers, is severly affected.

Sources