The Canadian Police have said they were searching for a suspect, after three Hindu temples were broken into in the province of Ontario beginning this month.
All the break-ins occurred over the span of a few hours early October 8 morning in Pickering and Ajax cities, the Durham Police said in a statement.
The suspect, observed walking with a limp in surveillance footage, is five feet nine inches tall, weighing approximately 200 lbs, according to the police.
He is seen wearing a blue surgical mask, black jacket with tightly zipped hood, green ‘camo’ cargo pants, and green running shoes.
Police said that on October 8, at approximately 12:45 a.m., officers responded to reports of a break-and-enter in progress at a religious temple in the area of Bayly Street and Krosno Boulevard in Pickering.
A male was seen on security surveillance making entry into the temple and taking a large quantity of cash from the donation boxes. He fled the area prior to police arrival.
A short time later, at approximately 1:30 a.m., the cops responded to reports of a break-and-enter in progress at another temple in Pickering in the area of Brock Road and Dersan Street.
A resident of the temple reported that a male had broken through a window and attempted to steal a safe which contained donated cash.
The male was unsuccessful and fled prior to police arrival. Surveillance footage was reviewed and the male was confirmed to be the same suspect who had committed the earlier break-and-enter.
Later, at around 2:50 a.m., the same man broke into a religious temple in the area of Westney Road South and Bayly Street West in Ajax. He stole a large quantity of cash from a donation box.
At least two temples from the Greater Toronto Area were targeted last month -- the Chintpurni Temple in Brampton on September 9 and the Rameshwar Mandir in Caledon, on September 18.
In a statement posted on Facebook on September 22, the Rameshwar Mandir said: “An ongoing investigation by the police is under way to apprehend those responsible for this breach of security. We are cooperating fully with the authorities in their efforts to resolve this matter swiftly”.
“We would like to assure the public that we take this incident very seriously and will continue to prioritise the safety and well-being of our visitors, devotees and the security of our premises,” the statement read.
Last year, close to half-a-dozen Hindu temples in the Greater Toronto Area were reportedly robbed in a span of ten days.