Buses stolen from church grounds - Preacher urges culprits to seek forgiveness

Last Sunday, members of Church on the Rock on Constant Spring Road, St Andrew, were left startled when they discovered that thieves had broken onto the church grounds and stole their two coaster buses.

“They cut the locks and chains on the church gate, and they came in. The security guard was here, but he reported that he never saw or heard anything,” Apostle Franz Fletcher, who heads the church,  told THE STAR.

“I was startled because we have never had a problem in all our 32 years of existence at this spot here. The truth is that we are in the last days now, and the scripture warned us that evil is going to wax worse and worse,” Fletcher said.

The matter was reported to the police, and according to Fletcher, they acted swiftly and were able to recover the buses on Tuesday morning. However, that was not before the culprits scrapped one of them down to the seats.

An officer at the Corporate Communications Unit said the buses were recovered in two different locations in August Town, St Andrew. The remains of the scrapped bus were found close to the community centre, while the other bus, which was stripped of its license plate and the church name, was found near an abandoned building on Escarpment Road.

The police are yet to arrest anyone in relation to the incident.

Amazed by the brazenness of the thieves, Fletcher said, “I hope that the perpetrators of this crime realise that they have touched the people of God. It is a dangerous thing to mess with a true believer. God says, ‘Vengeance is mine. I am going to repay them’.”

Fletcher said he is advising the culprits to seek forgiveness from God.

"Bus can make over back again, but a soul that is cut off from God is a dangerous thing. There is really no hope for that person.”

The loss of the buses come as an inconvenience to the church as many persons depend on them to be transported to and from the church.

Nonetheless, Fletcher said the work of the Lord will not be daunted by criminals, and alternate transportation arrangements have been made.