SUBIACO, Ark. — Logan County Sheriff's Office responded to a report of a damaged altar and two stolen relic boxes at the Subiaco Abbey on Jan. 5, and later arrested a man accused of the crimes.
The man, identified as Jerrid Farnam, "took a hammer to the altar," Abbey officials told deputies.
"The altar is a very large piece of marble that was imported from Italy and had two reliquaries (small brass-colored boxes) embedded in the altar," officials said, adding that each relic box had relics from saints from over 1,500 years ago.
The area of the altar where Farnam is accused of destroying with a hammer is described as having a large hole in the middle of the slab, with cracks and chips. "The suspect also messed with the tabernacle that is near the altar but did not damage it," deputies said.
Soon after deputies left the Abbey, the suspect returned, and Abbey officials called the sheriff's office who was able to arrest Farnam. According to police, tools in his truck had marble dust on them, along with one of the relic boxes.
Farnam is currently being held in the Logan County Detention Center and no bond has been set.
The sheriff's office says "anticipated charges" include theft, criminal mischief, burglary, breaking and entering and public intoxication.
"Due to the nature of the destruction and the difficulty in estimating the cost of the items destroyed and stolen and that an altar was desecrated, the charges may change," the sheriff's office said.
Subiaco Abbey posted on Facebook Friday that both relics taken had been returned. They had been sealed into the altar in March 1959, when the altar and Church was consecrated by Bishop Albert L. Fletcher.
The investigation is still ongoing, stay with 5NEWS as this story develops.
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