A 19-year-old named Enock George Masala was arrested while trying to escape with the Holy Sacrament from a Catholic church in Ifakara, Tanzania.
The incident occurred at St. Andrew’s Cathedral on Sunday morning, where Masala was apprehended by the church’s security.
Reports indicate that the suspect was caught trying to leave with the Holy Sacrament after receiving the Eucharist during the morning Mass in the Morogoro region. Masala had joined other congregants for the first Mass of the day on July 28.
During the service, an announcement was made regarding the theft attempt, and the suspect was apprehended.
Father Marcus Mirwatu, the parish priest at St. Andrew’s Cathedral in Ifakara Diocese, expressed concern over a series of incidents involving non-Catholics entering the church to receive communion and then leaving with the Holy Sacrament, which goes against the church’s customs and guidelines.
The priest condemned such actions and urged the faithful to expose individuals who engage in such behavior, which contradicts the church’s beliefs.
He also called on the church’s security to continue questioning the young man to understand his motives for committing the act.
“We are struggling to understand who sends these people to commit these acts. We don’t know what their intentions are towards our church. Therefore, I ask that this young man continue to be questioned about why he did this,” Father Mirwatu explained.
When interviewed by a journalist, the young man admitted that he is not a Catholic Christian and stated that he committed the act after seeing other Christians lining up to receive the Sacrament.
He claimed that he was unaware it was wrong to leave with the Sacrament and openly admitted that he does not know all the church’s procedures.
