Church looters network dismantled: stolen items for sale
A few days ago, the gendarmerie in Meaux succeeded in dismantling a racket of stolen items resold on Leboncoin. In all, 26 churches were taken by storm by a 58-year-old man and two fences.
A 58-year-old collector at the head of the network
For almost 8 months, a 58-year-old collector has been stealing valuable religious objects from churches across France. It all began last November with a burglary in the church of a small village in Seine-et-Marne. The alarm was raised by villagers who discovered that the door of the church, closed to the public for repairs, had been completely demolished. The gendarmerie present at the scene found many stolen objects.
Stolen items resold on Leboncoin
Following this tragic story, a local councillor went to Leboncoin. He was shocked to find some of the stolen items on the famous classified ads site. He passed himself off as an interested buyer and contacted the seller. At the same time, the local councillor also alerted the gendarmes who, thanks to the advert, managed to arrest a 58-year-old man. The gendarmes then realised that a whole network of scams was involved.
The suspect had two contacts in the second-hand trade, to whom he sold the stolen cult objects, and if his contacts were not interested, it was at this point that he placed ads for sale on Leboncoin, the famous site for transactions between private individuals.
60,000 in loot
A total of 26 little-frequented churches in 9 French departments were stolen. The 58-year-old man stole 80 items, representing a loss of €60,000. Thanks in particular to an appeal for witnesses launched by the Seine-et-Marne gendarmerie, 41 of the 80 items stolen by the swindler have already been returned to their owners. The suspect will stand trial in June, along with his fences.
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