Vandals Tagged Church Walls and Door with Blasphemous Words

Case information
Incident date
Country
Italy
Place
Muggio
Categories
  • Social Hostility / Intolerance
Attack Against
  • Faith
Perpetrator / Motive Indicators
  • Private
Hate Crime & Violent Incidents
  • Desecration
  • Vandalism (all)
  • Vandalism of Church
Place of Incident
  • Church
Bias Indicators
  • Comments/Written Statements/Gestures/Graffiti
Reported to Police
  • Unknown
Response of Local Authorities
  • Unknown
Image credit: Prima Monza

In Muggio, the façade of the Sanctuary of the Madonna del Castagno was found covered with blasphemous taggs on the 21st of January. The walls and the entrance door of the church were vandalised by unknown perpetrators, with the words "Dio cane" (Dog God). According to the news outlet "Today", the places of worship in the city had been attacked with arson in recent weeks and in the summer. The community was very affected by this incident and volunteers have cleaned the walls.

UPDATE: MBNews reported on 7 November 2022 that the criminal was identified by the police and that he had targeted sacred places in Muggiò and Lissone because he felt a feeling of "animosity" toward the church.

According to the news, another small church, "Santa Giuliana", in another district has been targeted, as the doormat was set on fire and the doors were blackened by smoke. Also in August, a similar incident happened at the church of San Francesco.

Sources