A man was caught breaking into a church in Fife in broad daylight while he wore a high vis jacket.
The incident at Dysart St Clair Parish Church took place on Saturday morning.
The man has caused thousands of pounds worth of damage which includes smashing windows and a pane of glass designed by one church member.
He also stole items such as several jars of coffee, biscuits, sweets and a packet of bacon. No money was taken.
As a result of the incident, the church cancelled its Sunday service.
Church members have since been cleaning up the mess left behind.
Those at the church say the incident happened at about 9am, while a local Slimming World club met at Dysart Community Hall next door.
Janice Summers, church treasurer, was one of the first to arrive on scene and walked in on the man in the middle of his crime spree.
She said: “The alarm was blaring and it didn’t faze him at all. He was still there.
“I walked in on him in the vestry. He had some scissors in his hand which I think he used to pry open the cupboards and filing cabinet.
“Stuff from the cupboards was all over the floor and he broke a pane of glass on one of the church doors, it was designed by one of our church members.
“He tried to use a bottle of alcohol-free prosecco we had to smash it but the liquid went everywhere, we found the glass all over the floor.
“He must have picked up the fire extinguisher and used that to smash it as the fire extinguisher was in the middle of the floor near a yoghurt pot he left on top of the bin.
“He smashed one of the outside windows in with a stone or a brick. There’s glass everywhere.
“This is the third break-in we’ve had. Everyone is devastated. It’s such a shame.”
Man said he ‘was sent’
She added: “The people at the Slimming World meeting next door heard banging noises but thought it was just a car backfiring.
“The man kept saying he had been sent by someone.
“While we can laugh about it now, it was really scary and has made us all really wary.
“We don’t lock up in the dark anymore.”
The church has cancelled all events and classes on Monday and Tuesday, it hopes to resume normal service from Wednesday.
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “We were made aware of a break-in at a church in the West Port area of Dysart shortly after 10am on Saturday.
“Inquiries into the incident are ongoing and anyone with information can call 101, quoting reference 1128 of February 25.”
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