Four thieves broke into a Latin Catholic Church in the Beyoğlu district of Istanbul, stealing a number of religious artifacts on Sept. 15 but were caught later in the day, Hurriyet reports.
The thieves took religious artifacts outside the church and loaded them into vehicles, which included a statue, a cross, many paintings and several religious books.
Meanwhile, police examined city surveillance cameras around the scene, determining the vehicles they used in the attempt and their subsequent addresses. The four, identified only as Osman Adnan K., Adem H., Bekir M. and Karim M., of Uzbek-origin, were detained at three different addresses in the Zeytinburnu district.
They pleaded guilty and said they had sold a carpet stolen from the church to an auctioneer in Beyoğlu. It was later taken back before being sold.
While performing a search at their addresses, police also seized books and symbols, which had previously been stolen from different churches.
