Area churches burglarized

NICOLE NORRIS/THE GREENVILLE STANDARD

Recently two Butler County churches were burglarized. Both Oak Valley Baptist Church and Bragg Hill AME Zion Church are located on Ridge Road. Butler County Sheriff, Kenny Harden, stated that his office received a call from Oak Valley last Friday in reference to a break-in.Once on the scene is was discovered that two air conditioners were stolen.A short time later another call came in that a break-in had occurred at Bragg Hill AME Zion. Air conditioners, stepladders, a keyboard, a microphone, a speaker and other items were stolen.Thanks to a concerned citizen, the sheriff’s office received a tip about the thieves.“We received a call from a person in another county who thought she might have one of the air conditioners,”Harden said. “She told us who she bought it from, and we looked at the air conditioner and confirmed that it was one of the units taken from the church.”Authorities obtained a search warrant and went to a residence on Ridge Road, where two more air conditioners and two stepladders were found. Authorities also found a meth lab at the location. Nothing further is available at this time as the investigation is on-going.