A more than 100-year-old church bell was stolen from Saint Peter Parish Church in Poblacion, Ondol, Loboc, Bohol, with police later arresting one suspect and recovering the missing bell.
Church personnel discovered that the bell was missing at around 7:50 a.m. Oct. 5 and immediately reported the incident to police.
An investigation, including a review of closed-circuit television footage, showed two individuals allegedly taking the bell and loading it onto a tricycle.
Loboc police coordinated with the Sagbayan Municipal Police Station as investigators worked to identify those allegedly involved in the theft.
At around 1:50 a.m. Oct. 6, police arrested a 25-year-old man who was identified as an alleged scrap metal buyer and resident of Sagbayan.
During a follow-up operation, police recovered the missing bell in Purok 2, Libertad, Tubigon.
The bell was reportedly made in 1914, making it more than a century old.
Police also identified a woman who was allegedly involved in the incident. She remains at large, according to the report.
The arrested suspect was brought to the Loboc Police Station for documentation and the filing of appropriate charges.
The recovery followed the CCTV-based investigation that led police from Loboc to coordinate with authorities in Sagbayan and eventually locate the bell in Tubigon.
The incident involved a historic church item that had been kept at Saint Peter Parish Church in Loboc before it was reported missing Oct. 5.
Police continue processing the case against the arrested suspect, while the identified female suspect remains at large.
