News Church targeted by lead thieves
Lead thieves have struck again at a parish church.
The theft happened at St James' Parish Church in Rawcliffe, which has been targeted by lead thieves five times in the past 18 months.
On each occasion they stripped lead worth thousands of pounds from the vestry roof to sell on for large sums of money.
Church members say "enough is enough" and are now planning to cover the roof with bitumen roofing felt, which has no value on the black market.
The thieves struck on three separate nights last week in early-morning operations.
Parishioners and church staff - who have had to replace the lead twice before at a cost of £15,000 - are said to be "devastated".
They are now saying they cannot afford to replace the lead on the Grade II listed church.
"They came three times last week and stripped virtually the whole of the lead," said church warden Francis Sykes. "They even took all the lead down-spouts. It's devastating and we're completely fed up of it."
After morning worship last Sunday senior church members including Mr Sykes, vicar Geoff Hollingsworth and another church warden held an emergency meeting to discuss what to do about the problem.
They're now planning to contact the church architects to seek permission to strip the roof of lead themselves, in an effort to stop the thieves coming back for more.
"We keep replacing the lead but then have to wait for the burglars to take it all," said Mr Sykes. "We've contacted the diocesan architects to see if we can strip the lead ourselves and use the money to cover the roof in bitumen roofing felt instead.
"We know if we don't do this they'll come back for it; they're coming on a nightly basis now."
For the time being the church is having to make do with a plastic sheet to cover the roof and prevent rainwater pouring down into the vestry.
"All the choir robes are in there and some of the clothes got soaked," said Mr Sykes. "It's all very sad."
Last month 20-year-old Carl Staniforth, from Thorne, was ordered to pay £680 compensation to the church after pleading guilty to stealing lead.
Mr Staniforth was with another man who stripped the metal from the vestry roof on December 6 last year.
This followed a similar incident less than 12 months earlier when thieves took £15,000 of the metal from the same roof. There is no suggestion whatsoever that Mr Staniforth was involved in that incident.
The church had to fork out the money to replace the lead, only for it to be stripped again.
Last week's thefts were the latest in a series of raids in which lead has been stolen from churches in the East Riding.
Police say this type of crime is on the increase througout the region.
They say that thieves are looking to capitalise on the lucrative sums that lead commands on the black market.
A police spokeswoman said police community support officers had stepped up patrols in the area since the thefts, which happened on three consecutive nights last week.
She said the first theft happened between 5pm on Sunday, April 20 and 9am on April 21, when two lengths of lead downpipe and clips were stolen from the roof of St James' church.
The second happened between 5pm and and 10.40pm the following night, when lead drainpipes were taken.
The third happened between 3pm on Tuesday, April 22, and 9am on Wednesday 23, when lead was stolen from the roof.
The spokesman said: "The incidents are currently under investigation and PCSOs are increasing patrols in the area.
"Officers are asking everyone, particularly those who live near to our historic churches, to be vigilant."
Police are now urging people to report any suspicious goings-on around churches in the early hours of the morning.
"It could prevent a crime or help detect one," said the spokeswoman. "These offences are something we all need to work together to detect. Please help us by reporting anything suspicious.'
Anyone with information about the thefts at St James should contact Humberside Police on 0845 60 60 222. Alternatively, contact Crimestoppers anonymously on: 0800 555 111.
Published on 8th May 2008 in News.
Add to: Digg | del.icio.us | Reddit
Comments
There are currently no comments
Comment
All comments are subject to moderation (during normal office hours) and may be amended.
Email addresses are required for administration purposes only.
By contributing your comments, you accept our terms and conditions.