A reward has been posted for information that helps property crimes detectives working thefts of exterior heat and air conditioning units at four rural churches to solve these crimes.
The Bradley County Sheriff’s Office posted the reward, an amount up to $500, for information that leads to the arrest and conviction of the person or persons responsible for losses that now surpass $20,000.
The pastor of Covenant Baptist Church on Tuesday reported the building's air conditioning unit had been destroyed and copper stolen sometime after Sunday services. Replacing the unit will cost the church about $5,000.
Covenant Baptist, on Calhoun Road, is in the same general area of the county as the other affected churches, Union Grove Church of Christ, Cedar Springs Baptist Church, and Thompson Springs Baptist Church.
Anyone with information about these crimes should contact the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office Criminal Investigations Division by calling 423-728-7336. Tips can be left anonymously.
Anyone observing suspicious activity around churches during times that services are not being held should call 911.