All cases
Manhole Cover Used to Break Window in Attempt of Theft on Pentecost
June 9, 2019, GermanyUnknown offenders unskrewed the outside barring of a window of the Protestant Johannes Church in Tostedt in the night of June 9th, Whitsunday to Whitmonday. They then broke the window by throwing a manhole cover at it, however, they were not able to gain access due to another set of window grills on the inside of the window.
Vandals Destroy Shrine Outside Church on Pentecost
June 9, 2019, GermanyUnidentified vandals targeted the St. Josef Catholic Church in Ebingen, Albstadt during the night of June 9th (Whitsunday to Whitmonday). They damaged the shrine outside the church by smashing the glass pane, tore down flowerpots, and destroyed candles. They also smashed the mirror glass in the bathroom which is accessible from the outside with a rock. Property damage amounts to about 100 euros.
Church's Exterior Crucifix Destroyed
June 9, 2019, GermanyUnknown vandals damaged the wooden cross in the church yard of the Catholic Church in Harbach during the night of June 9th to 10th by tearing down the corpus (statue of Jesus) and completely destroying it.
Persistent Vandalism of Church in Dierdorf
June 6, 2019, GermanyThe Protestant Church in Dierdorf im Westerwald has been a target for vandalism for nearly two years. Reports beginning in July 2017 indicate that vandals have smashed windows, burned feminine hygiene products stuck to a wall to damage wall plaster, left graffiti on the walls and doors, knocked over park benches, and littered the area around the church every week. Property damage has reached tens of thousands of euros. The congregation is frustrated and horrified.
Fire Set On High Altar in Bad Dürrheim Church
June 5, 2019, GermanyUnknown arsonists lit all candles in the Catholic St. Johann Church in Bad Dürrheim on June 5th before setting fire to a flowerpot placed on the 300-year-old wooden high altar with several burning candles. A church visitor noticed the burning candles and the smell of something burning. As she looked for the source, she found that the flowerpot was almost completely burned and the fire had spread to the wooden altar tabletop. Just in time, she extinguished the fire with holy water and reported the incident. A book for pryer requests was also burned a little bit on one side. The immense damage that was done to the altar could not be estimated yet.
Arson Suspected in Ankum Catholic Church Fire
June 1, 2019, GermanyThe fire department in Ankum was called to a smoldering fire in the St. Nikolaus Catholic Church around noon on June 1st. When the team of 33 firefighters in six firetrucks arrived, the Swedish visitors who had initially discovered the two spots of smoldering fire in the church, had already extinguished them out with water. According to police, the church wasn't damaged by the fire and the fire department only had to inspect the site and quickly gave the all-clear. Police suspect arson and began their investigation with the help of the Swedish visitors describing two girls running out of the church just before they themselves entered and the church's surveillance video tapes.
Robbery from Esslingen Church
May 31, 2019, GermanyBetween May 29th and 31st, several unknown perpetrators broke into the Osterfeld Protestant Church in Berkheim, Esslingen. They entered by climbing the porch roof and, once inside, stole three game consoles and eight controllers from the youth room as well as one digital and one SLR camera from a storage room. The value of the stolen goods was estimated at around 1,000 euros and the property damage amounted to around 2,000 euros.
Vandals Burned Bible and Song Book; Left Feces in Church
May 31, 2019, GermanyOn May 31st, the Lutheran Nikolaikirche in Caldern was the target of vandals. Sometime between 8:30 am and 1:30 pm, unknown perpetrators entered the church, set fire to the bible and hymn book on the altar, and damaged three large candles. They also broke into a cabinet and a chest, but stole nothing. Finally, they left a pile of feces at the church entrance and another on a bench outside the church. Property damage amounted to approximately 300 euros and it is not yet clear how the perpetrators accessed the church. For the time being, the church will stay closed while investigations are ongoing.
Altar Window Smashed
May 28, 2019, GermanyAn unidentified vandal smashed the lead glazing of an altar window at the Catholic Church in Büchel in the afternoon of May 28th.
Graffiti on Church in Kronach
May 26, 2019, GermanyOn a Sunday afternoon, perpetrators tagged a church in Kronach with the tags "RCS" and "RCG" causing damage estimated at about 500 euros. The graffiti was found on the main entrance door and on a message board.