All cases

Statue of the Virgin Mary Blown Up in Waldmünchen

January 1, 2020, Germany

On New Year's Eve, a 22-year-old man blew up the statue of the Virgin Mary, which was placed in the garden of the parish of St. Stephen of Waldmünchen. The perpetrator also filmed the act. The statue stood on a one-meter-high grotto and was blown up with a banger. Parts of the statue were found within a radius of several meters, additionally a pile of rubble was left in the garden. The statue had a monetary value of 1.000 Euros, but the ideational damage is much bigger, for the grotto was made by a sacristan of the parish 40 years ago. When interrogated, the young man said he did it for the "nice feeling", he got reported by the police, but still walks freely.

Various Nativity Scenes Were Vandalised and Desecrated In Lombardy

January 1, 2020, Italy

In the days before and after New Year's Eve, there were several acts of vandalism of nativity scene throughout Lombardy. This included the cities of Lodi, Brescia, Milano, Como, Concorezzo and Fabriano. Most of the vandalism targeted the statues of the infant Jesus, but often the acts were towards the entire crib. In one case the Jesus statue was decapitated, thrown on the trash or destroyed, and the pictures were shared on social media. In other cases excrements were left on the scene and the figures were vandalised or stolen. The teenagers who posted the acts on social media were identified.

Nativity Scenes Destroyed and Burned Down in Ypres Saint Martin Church and Neighbourhoods of Marke, Watermael-Boitsfort and Mousset

January 1, 2020, Belgium

The nativity scene of Ypres Saint Martin Church has been damaged numerous times in the last period. Perpetrators tore the baby Jesus apart as well as smeared the figures of the saints with ketchup. The hat of Joseph disappeared twice, and the dolls were pulled apart. In another neighbourhood, Marke, the baby Jesus has also been stolen from the nativity scene and hung above the tunnel. In Watermael-Boitsfort and Mousset, the nativity scenes were set on fire. The cases have been suspected as arson.

Theft of Stola and repeated Contamination of Confessional in Church of Alzenau-Hörstein

January 0, 2020, Germany

In the church "Mariä Himmelfahrt" in Alzenau-Hörstein, faeces were repeatedly left in the confessional; in addition, a stole was stolen. The suspected perpetrator was caught by chance during a traffic control.

Extremists Set Fire to Christian Journalist’s Car in Berlin

December 31, 2019, Germany

On December 31st German pro-life journalist Gunnar Schupelius’s car was destroyed in an arson attack for which the so-called “Autonomous Feminist Cell” claimed responsibility.

Jesus Statue Beheaded in the Crèche of Caprino Veronese

December 31, 2019, Italy

Parishioners at the New Year's Day Mass learned from the priest that the statue of Jesus was no longer in the cradle in the nativity scene in Piazza San Marco in Caprino Veronese because it had been decapitated the night before.

Christmas Figures Broken by Vandals on New Year's Eve

December 31, 2019, Italy

Statues in the nativity scene in Piazza della Libertà, Lizzanello (Lecce) were vandalized by unknown perpetrators during the night of December 31st. The faces of several of the handmade statues were smashed.

Christ Figure Stolen from Nativity on New Year's Eve

December 31, 2019, Italy

On New Year's Eve, a man riding a bicycle was filmed by security cameras stopping at the crèche in Lecce's Piazza Duomo and stealing the Christ child figure.

Nativity Scene Dismantled Early Due to Repeated Vandalism

December 30, 2019, Italy

Volunteers from the volunteer association Pro Loco of Robbiate were forced to take down the nativity installation prematurely due to repeated vandalism. Vandalism included detaching wooden planks from the hut, dismantling pieces of the roof, and throwing away ornaments and furnishings. The display was dismantled on December 29th instead of January 6th.

Four Teenagers Vandalized Christ Child Statue in Nativity Scene

December 29, 2019, Italy

Four teenaged boys were identified and referred to the Public Prosecutor at the Juvenile Court of Bresci on allegations that they vandalized the statue of the Christ child in the nativity scene in the piazza outside the basilica in San Benedetto Po. The day after the incident, police found the head and torso of the statue hanging on an iron pole on the opposite side of the piazza. Evidence collected led the police to the four perpetrators, described as Muslims, born in Italy, of Moroccan descent. They reportedly admitted their involvement in the incident.