Lebanese law enforcement officers alongside their vehicles in Beirut. (Credit: AFP)
BEIRUT — The General Directorate of Internal Security Forces (ISF) said in a statement on Sunday that it has arrested a serial thief responsible for multiple robberies targeting churches and other institutions in the Beirut area.
The arrest took place on Thursday, according to the statement, which noted that an unidentified person had broken into the office of the administration of Our Lady of the Coast Church for the Greek Melkite Catholics in Jal Al Dib, north of Beirut, on Aug.11 and stole seven "golden crosses" worth an estimated $7,000.
Following an investigation, police identified the suspect as M.S., a 51-year-old Lebanese man with over 100 outstanding warrants for theft, robbery, drug offenses, and impersonation.
On August 15, a patrol intercepted M.S. in Ain Al-Remmaneh, Beirut, and seized the van he used in the church robbery.
During questioning, M.S. confessed to the Jal El Dib church theft, as well as multiple other break-ins targeting the Sabtieh Church, the Assyrian School, and the Caritas building, according to the ISF. He would often pose as a cleaning supplies salesman to gain entry before carrying out the thefts. The stolen goods were then sold in the Sabra neighborhood in Beirut to fund his drug use, the ISF said.
The investigation remains ongoing under judicial supervision, the ISF statement said.
