SAN ANTONIO — A bold theft was caught on camera when thousands of dollars was stolen from Sikh Dharamsal, a northwest-side temple.
Staff at the place of worship say the man who can be seen in the footage came in during the day and made off with at least $5,000--money that came in via donations, according to a temple leader.
"It is very disturbing," said Gurpaul Singh, director of community outreach at Sikh Dharamsal. "So sad (that) this is happening in our city and community."
Singh said the theft happened last week, on the morning of July 25. He says the suspect came in and went to the temple's prayer area, where a large donation box filled with money was sitting.
The accused thief can be seen trying to open that box up using a tool. After some time, he walks out, comes back in, makes a call and then decides to drag the box out. He can then be seen taking money out and stuffing it into a bag in a hallway by the door.
Singh says the temple relies on donations to keep daily operations running.
"To provide (for) our free kitchen and to run programs like Haven for Hope and the food bank," he added.
Sikh Dharamsal leaders filed a report with the San Antonio Police Department.
"We don't hold any ill feeling toward the perpetrator," Singh said. "But we do feel like this kind of offending against a house of worship is really the worst (kind) of offending."
The temple community is now warning other local places of worship about what happened to them. These faithful say they'll move forward.
"We have a very strong and resilient community," Singh said. "We will bounce back from this. We already have."
The temple is typically open during the day for worshippers to pray, so it's not uncommon for people to walk right in. But Singh says the temple has since made security changes, and will now be emptying its donation box on a more regular basis.
Anyone with information about the crime is urged to call police.
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