The Kirkcaldy church of football star Marvin Andrews was robbed of £1,000 of charity money by a callous thief who received their aid.
The Zion Praise Centre in Mitchell Street has vowed to continue helping the Kirkcaldy community after being ransacked by street beggar John Hunter.
Ex-Raith Rovers and Rangers star Marvin Andrews, and church founder and senior minister Pastor Joe Nwokoye, provided food and money for Hunter when he came to them begging for help.
Hunter paid them back for their kindness by scoping the daily workings of the church before smashing his way in and stealing the cash. He then lied to them when confronted over his actions until he was caught by forensic blood evidence.
Pastor Joe said: “People pass through here all the time needing spiritual, material and financial help.
“A man walked into the church one Sunday morning crying. He said ‘I want to kill myself’ and said two weeks prior one of his friends had died from a drug overdose.
“I counselled him, prayed for him and gave him money to eat. On that Sunday night he came back with John Hunter who said he was homeless, needed food and had many problems. We wanted to help him and gave him money for food.”
When Pastor Joe was on a mission abroad, Hunter took advantage of Pastor Marvin, who plays for Forfar Athletic, having to attend football training and matches.
“He broke the window, went to the church office, broke the door and stole about £1,000,” continued Pastor Joe.
“I knew it was him. I called him and he came to my office. I said John tell me the truth, you did this, you’re sorry and we can end this case right here. He said no, he’s been falsely accused.
“He even left a note for me after a service which said, ‘I might be everything bad but I’m not a thief’.”
Pastor Joe stated the police took a blood sample from the broken church door which was a match for Hunter, who begs every day on Kirkcaldy High Street.
“The police went to his house and couldn’t find the money as he had finished it. An amount of £1,000 is like £250,000 in Nigerian money in Africa. If you gave it to somebody they would start a business that would help so many people.But to drug addicts that is nothing to them.
“We will not stop helping people. We’ll have to be cautious and use wisdom but we don’t want this one incident to stop us helping those really in need.
“There are some churches that John could go to that they won’t let him cross the door because he stinks of alcohol.
“We cannot shut our door against anybody. We are here to help this community. The church is not meant just for Sunday service, the church is part of the community.”
Last month John Hunter, 36, of Dunnikier Road, Kirkcaldy, admitted stealing a quantity of envelopes containing cash from the church on April 5 last year. He is due to be sentenced in May.