A Baptist church in Little Rock reported $2,100 in musical instruments and equipment stolen in a break-in Sunday morning, according to a police report.
The pastor at New Grace Baptist Church, the Rev. Virgil Taylor, said the equipment reported stolen — drums, a keyboard, a receiver and an amplifier — was taken from the church's sanctuary before Sunday morning services.
A deacon at the New Grace Baptist Church was driving by the church on Calhoun Street before 9 a.m. Sunday when he noticed an open window and called police to report a burglary in progress, according to a Little Rock police report.
After clearing the scene, police discovered a broken window that they concluded one or more burglars used to enter the church before escaping through a side window, the report said.
Taylor said he views the church as a "safe haven."
"It feels like we've been violated," Taylor said. "It hit me even greater because it was a Sunday morning, and we were preparing for Christian enrichment."
A deacon loaned some equipment for worshipers to use Sunday, and church officials spent the rest of the afternoon boarding up the broken window, Taylor said.
A door frame was also damaged and wires were ripped from a wall during the burglary, he said.
Police said they were unable to lift fingerprints from either of the windows and did not have a description of a burglar.
Taylor said an alarm system malfunctioned, and the church has no security cameras to capture images of the intruder.
Taylor said the church is looking for donations to replace the stolen equipment.