4 People Break Into Minnesota Church Looking for Ghosts
Four people broke into a historic Minnesota church in an attempt to search for ghosts on the property, according to local police.
Three men and one woman were arrested around 2 a.m. Sunday attempting to break into Ness Lutheran Church of Litchfield, located in Meeker County.
Meeker County Sheriff Brian Cruze told The Christian Post that the four individuals were stopped not long after an alarm was sounded.
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"They were stopped shortly after the alarm call came in just down the road from the church. The suspects were interviewed and arrested as a result," said Cruze.
"The four were arrested that night. The three males were charged with felony burglary and felony criminal damage to property and made a first appearance in court. The female was released pending further investigation."
Sheriff Cruze also told CP that while the investigation remains open, the apparent cause of the break-in was an attempt to find ghosts.
"They said they were there because they saw on the Internet that the church is haunted," said Cruze, who noted that information was still pending as to the extent of damage caused by the act. "They came to see if that was true and took video of themselves as they broke in. They wanted to video the event in an attempt to capture paranormal activity."
Ness Lutheran Church boasts of being one of Minnesota's oldest historic sites, having existed there since the mid-19th century.
The church is also widely believed to be the home of supernatural beings, according to the website hauntedplaces.org.
"Legends of ghostly Sioux Indians and a little girl named Annie surround this church. Some say the church lights come on and apparitions can be seen around the grounds," notes the site.
Cruze explained to CP that over the past few years there have been "several attempts and some actual break-ins" by people coming to Ness Church and the overall property.
"We mainly deal with trespassers who sometimes do damage to headstones and monuments. Depending on the attention the activity comes and goes," said Cruze.
"As a result of all this media attention on this incident, we anticipate more activity. We have increased patrols and will issue tickets for trespass if people are out there after hours. We will arrest for any criminal damage to property and burglary if they break in."
