Stolen church cross returned after 18 months
A church volunteer was surprised to find what was stopping him opening a cupboard was a cross stolen from the church 18 months before.
In June 2023, the cross was the only item taken from the metal cabinet, in the vestry of St Breward Church on Bodmin Moor, Cornwall, after it had been left unlocked.
An appeal was made for the return of the cross to no avail and over time the church community assumed it was lost.
In December, a churchwarden went to open the cabinet but was prevented by an object that was wedged up against it... it was the cross, which has since been returned to its rightful place on the altar.
"I didn't expect to see it again," said retired solicitor Jeremy Hooper, who is a churchwarden.
After a service on 25 June 2023 he placed the altar brass, bibles and gospel into the cabinet but forgot to padlock it.
Mr Hooper said: "I was surprised, with the cupboard being left open, that someone hadn't taken everything, which would have been a real disaster."
A week later the other churchwarden Paddy McShee went to the cabinet to get out the brass and discovered the main cross was missing.
It was also Mr McShee who discovered the cross when he went to get items from the cabinet for a funeral service in December.
"I tried to open the door and I couldn't. I looked down and lo and behold there was the cross, shoved up against the door," he said.
"Certainly it hadn't been looked after, or (kept) indoors by the look of it, I know it's brass but there was some corrosion on it."
"I couldn't believe it I was so pleased that it was there I called the vicar... and he came and said "wow", we were both so pleased to see it again, said Mr McShee.
He said: "We've had stuff stolen before from our church, but that was all retrieved and we carried on.
"But since then we have a sealed cabinet with another lock on it. But it's a sign of the times, we have to lock things away."
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