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Southwest Philadelphia Church Burglarized For Second Time In A Month

By Natasha Brown

PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- A burglary in a place of worship.

"But I just think that it's just awful that you think that it's okay to go in there and steal and rob," said pastor Beverly Clayburn.

Fences, locks, even surveillance cameras aren't enough to deter a brazen burglar from targeting Straight Gate Church in the 6000 block of Elmwood Avenue in Southwest Philadelphia not once, but twice.

"I cried, but I stopped crying and I said we're going to finish this. We started it and we're going to finish it," said Clayburn.

Pastor Beverly Clayburn's tears have strengthened her resolve, determined to find this man who first broke into the newly constructed church overnight on December 13th.  The latest break-in happened at 7:30 a.m. January 25th. He's seen hurdling a fence in broad daylight making off with $8,000 worth of copper piping and plumbing fixtures.

"The video is pretty good. I mean this is a daytime one, it's 7:30 to 8 a.m. when he enters. You see a good shot of his face and you also see a decent shot of the car which is parked across the street that he gets into," said Philadelphia Police Lt. John Walker.

When Pastor Clayburn isn't in the pulpit she's one of at least a dozen police chaplains in the 12th District. Her vision for Straight Gate Church was seven years in the planning. Now in the finishing stages of construction that began in July, another blow to a community in need of inspiration.

"We will not have some idiot decide that he wants to vandalized our community and put us, hold us at bay, and make us be afraid," said Clayburn.

Police tell CBS 3 Eyewitness News they believe the suspect is getting away in a dark SUV, possibly a Navigator.

The pastor tells CBS 3 that between these two burglaries, they're now dealing with about $18,000 worth of damage to their church.

 

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