WALTHAM, MASS. (WHDH) - Police are investigating after vandals removed the head and hand from a Jesus statue outside of a church in Waltham.
The decades-old religious relic at St. Charles Chapel was damaged over the weekend, Father Michael Nolan said, as he clutched the broken pieces of the statue.
“We can consider it an act of vandalism or a sacrilege act,” Nolan said. “It pains me to see any attack on the faith or the religion of any believers.”
Parishioner William Childs was the first to discover the damage. He says the incident is personal to him because he was baptized at the church.
“I’m 37 years old and I made my communion here,” Childs said. “It was a terrible thing.”
When asked if there was any reason to suspect a hate crime, Nolan said, “No. Not yet.”
Disheartened neighborhood residents condemned the criminal act.
Nolan added that it’s not clear if the statue can be repaired.
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