A Van Nuys, California, church is considering a move after several of its rooms were broken into and ransacked. Calvary Chapel Mid Valley Church currently rents its meeting spaces from Van Nuys Seventh-day Adventist Church.
The break-in occurred at around 2:30 a.m. on Monday, Sept. 11. The windows of several rooms were broken, including a kindergarten classroom and an office space, and the rooms were left in disarray.
The church is not yet sure what, if anything, was stolen.
A neighbor to the church heard a disturbance and called police. However, the suspect was able to escape on foot as officers arrived on the scene, according to CBS Los Angeles.
No description of the suspect has been released.
All told, 10 windows were broken. In the classroom, Bible and classroom supplies were found strewn about the floor.
Robert Shank, Calvary Chapel Mid Valley Church’s senior pastor, told The Los Angeles Times that the burglary is not the first time the church has been victimized.
Shank’s car was stolen from the church’s parking lot last year, and he said that thieves have broken into or vandalized vehicles parked in the lot at least three times this year alone.
Despite having held church at the location for 11 years, Shank said that the congregation of roughly 60 members is ready to find somewhere else to meet.
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“This is causing us to move out,” Shank said. “We have decided that we are no longer safe at this facility. To me, this is just proof or an indicator that we need to go. This is just a sign for us. We need to get out of here.”
