Between two and three thefts from churches every day
There are on average between two and three thefts from churches in Belgium every day. The figures come from the Interior Minister Joëlle Milquet (Francophone Christian democrat) in response to a written question tabled by the Flemish liberal Senator Guido De Padt. Vandalism is also an issue in the country’s churches with on average one incident of vandalism being reported every day.
The figures that relate to incidents recorded in 2012 also reveal that they were 304 break-ins in churches during the year, down from the 324 cases recorded in 2011.
However, the number of thefts rose from 771 in 2011 to 829 on 2012. Meanwhile, insistences of vandalism fell from 508 in 2011 to 416 in 2012.
There were 4 reported sexual offences omitted in churches in the 12-month period from 1/1/12 to 31/12/12.