Authorities investigating string of Buddhist, Hindu temple thefts
CHASKA, Minn. — It was mid-afternoon in May when surveillance video inside Sri Saibaba Mandir captured two individuals inside the Hindu temple in Chaska.
Temple leaders said the two men left with $20,000 worth of sacred 24-karat gold necklaces. The burglars even appear to gesture to the temple's camera before leaving.
"They actually violated the sanctity of the place," said Tej Mucherla, a committee member and former President of Sri Saibaba Mandir. "I think it was all pre-staged. "They knew exactly what they were doing, where they were going."
The Chaska temple was not the only one hit.
Buddist monks at Wat Promwachirayan, a St. Louis Park Buddhist temple, said thieves walked away with $7,000 worth of cash, after breaking through the door of the monks' home, adjacent to the temple, back in June.
Before the burglary, three men arrived and said they would like to learn about meditation. A trick to get in the temple to scope things out, according to Vice Head of Monks, Theerapattarapop Phuangmala.
The Hindu Temple of Minnesota in Maple Grove experienced a burglary on the same day as Wat Promwachirayan.
"It just appears that they broke in through the back door. They were able to get away with a ton of things," said Shajive Jeganathan, President of the Hindu Society of Minnesota. "The items from our temple that were stolen were from the priest's quarters that were in our temple."
In the end, $70,000 worth of personal items and jewelry were taken from the Maple Grove temple.
In total, Jeganathan estimates upwards of $100,000 worth of items have been stolen, across 14 temple thefts in the Twin Cities.
"I was extremely shocked. One of the things that I am always concerned about is we are a place of worship and any place of worship, irrespective of whether your Buddist or Hindu, both were hit," said Jeganathan.
Maple Grove Police Chief Eric Werner said multiple jurisdictions are investigating a theft ring that may cross state lines as well.
Investigators with the Carver County Sheriff's Office said several men, believed to be involved with that ring, were arrested in late July while burglarizing a home in Blaine.
Authorities are still looking for others involved with the burglaries.
Mucherla said he believes the stolen items will eventually return, in some form or another.
"Lost ornaments, lost jewelry, it will all come back in a different form," said Mucherla. "This will come back."