Thieves target local non-profits

A Wilmington church was robbed last night, and it wasn’t the first time.

There’s no love for the Love Center Church in Wilmington at least no love from a burglar or a burglars who took two industrial sized air conditioners Wednesday night. The units were valued at six thousand dollars a piece.

“I just can’t, words just can’t explain what’s going on because it’s been a continuous thing,” said Georgetta Hamilton of the Love Center Church.

The night before, Georgetta said thieves made another attempt. Broken glass and the bars that used to guard the windows on this church building behind the sanctuary lay on the ground as evidence of that attempted entry.

About a half mile away, the Ocean House Mental Health Rehabilitation Center has been broken in to four times in the last three months. “They’re taking money, they’re taking food off our shelves in our refrigerator candy, things of that nature…they’re also taking computers,” explained the program’s coordinator Matrice Morrison.

Ocean House relies on state funds, Medicaid re-imbursements and money from their thrift store to operate.

Officers from the Wilmington Police Department’s Crime Prevention Unit have visited the site and said a few things make it vulnerable.

According to Wilmington police, there is no statistical increase in breaking and entering cases in this area.

In the case of Ocean House, people in the community have already donated computers to replace part of what was stolen. For Love Center Church, insurance will cover a portion of the air conditioners.