Thief hauls off $600 worth of Christmas trees from south Charlotte church

A south Charlotte church was robbed earlier this week of Christmas trees that it was selling to benefit local charities.

Officers with the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police were called to St. Gabriel Catholic Church on Monday morning, where the thief took off with $600 worth of trees, according to a police report. That’s about seven to eight trees, Fox 46 reported.

Witnesses alerted the church after seeing someone loading the trees to a vehicle, according to multiple reports.

“It never came to us that somebody might load up a trailer and take us off like that,” Glenn Shorkey, organizer of the Christmas tree drive, told WSOC-TV.

The Christmas tree sale has happened annually for more than 30 years, and is a major provider for local charities, with about $30,000 made annually, Shorkey told the TV station.

The church often makes it possible for families that struggle financially to get a tree.

“We always went on the philosophy that we would lose a tree here and there because someone needs a tree for the family,” Shorkey told Fox 46.

There are still plenty of trees to be sold at the church, according to multiple reports.

As of Wednesday, no arrests had been made regarding the stolen trees.

This story was originally published November 29, 2017 at 11:18 AM with the headline "Thief hauls off $600 worth of Christmas trees from south Charlotte church."