Thieves steal thousands of dollars' worth of equipment from church

Deacon arrvies to find blood on church door

SAN ANTONIO – The Shady Oaks Baptists Church congregation had their usually joyous Sunday church services dampened by thieves who broke in late Saturday night.

"I went to open the (church) door and it was real loose. I pulled on the door and opened it and I saw where they pried open the door and I saw the blood," said Deacon Walter Green who arrived at the church around 9:30 Sunday morning.

Bexar County Sheriff's Office investigators believe one of the thieves may have been cut while trying to enter through the front door. The thieves made entry at a back door and used a tire iron to pry the door open. They walked into the sanctuary and took the church's sound system.

"They took a $2,000 sound system and a $1,000 amplifier," said Pastor Michael Price. "I'm sure they probably needed it more than the church did, so we'll keep on going."

With no sound system, Price's usually boisterous sermon was somewhat muted. That did not stop him from lifting up prayers for his hurting congregation.  

"We're all in need of a savior, whether we're a pastor of a church or a thief," Price said. “We all need to be saved by grace and by grace alone."

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Bexar County Sheriff's Office.