French police in the city of Nîmes say they have arrested a man in connection to a particularly vulgar church attack that occurred in February in which the suspect smeared faeces on the wall of the church.
Police say they arrested a 21-year-old man who they have not formally identified in connection with the church attack, saying they expect him to be the person behind the smearing of faeces on the walls of the Notre-Dame des Enfants church back in February of this year, 20 Minutes reports.
The attack occurred between the night of February 5th to the morning of the 6th and, according to 20 Minutes, saw one or more individuals break into the church and destroy the tabernacle as well as smear excrement on the walls of the church.
Robert Wattebled, Bishop of Nîmes commented on the incident shortly after it occurred saying, “The sign of the cross and the Blessed Sacrament have been the subject of serious injurious actions. This act of profanation hurts us all in our deepest convictions.”
The attack was only one of at least nine attacks that occurred in February within an eleven day period including the vandalism of a church in the commune of Maisons-Laffitte and a church in Tarn which also saw the perpetrators attempt to set the place of worship on fire. Two teens were eventually arrested in connection with the Tarn church attack.
Last month it was revealed that a 41-year-old Pakistani migrant will face trial for another church attack which took place in the Saint-Denis Basilica, the home of the tombs of many former French Kings, earlier this year. The Pakistani man is accused of smashing stained glass windows and doing severe damage to the organ located within the building.
A report from the French Ministry of the Interior claimed that as many as 1,063 Christian sites were vandalised in 2018, an average of around three per day.
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