Suspects caught in St. Therese, St. Lawrence break-ins

Shelby Township — Clergy and staff at St. Therese of Lisieux Parish expressed relief and asked for prayers for three suspects arrested last week in connection to a string of sophisticated break-ins at Macomb County churches.

The three suspects, Jesse Vincent Brusseau-Meray, 20, Eric Joseph-Edward Eby, 19, and Logan Patrick Gerring, 17, were caught and arrested after a break-in at a nearby gas station April 22. Police said the three were also suspects in burglaries of St. Therese, St. Lawrence Parish in Utica and a Lutheran church in Clinton Township earlier this year. They were charged April 23 in the gas station break-in, and charges related to the church thefts were expected.

According to Linda Maccarone, parish manager at St. Therese, Gerring was a parishioner at St. Lawrence and often helped out with PowerPoint presentations during Mass announcements. He was also a former CYO council member, Maccarone said. The 19-year-old, Eby, a Protestant, had a history of counseling troubled youth, she said.

Maccarone said it was disappointing that young men with connections to the church could do such a thing, and urged prayers for them as well as for the parishes involved.

At a news conference April 23, Fr. Larry Zurawski, pastor of St. Therese, said he hoped the arrest would send a message to the suspects.

“I hope they would give the things back and don’t do it again, and lead a better life and maybe learn a lesson from this,” Fr. Zurawski said.

Police recovered most of the 1,000 to 2,000 collection envelopes taken from St. Therese on Easter Sunday in a storage unit, Maccarone said, but it will take time to count the money recovered. It was estimated that nearly $40,000 was taken during the heist.

However, two chalices reported missing from the parish were not recovered. Maccarone said the suspects denied taking the chalices, and may have used the duffel they were in to carry the money out.

“I really don’t think they would have any use for it, or need for it,” Fr. Zurawski said. “It is a sacred object. I would hope they would return it and not destroy it, or abuse it in any way.”

Maccarone said between the time of the burglary and when the suspects were caught, the parish received an outpouring of material and spiritual support from community and parish members.

Many parishioners have replaced their Easter donations, and one local businessman donated $1,000 to the parish and another $1,000 reward for information leading to the suspects, she said. Other donors ranged from a business owner from nearby St. John Vianney Parish and a woman “across town,” to even a man from Arizona who sent in money.

“One guy emailed me from Harrison Township and drove over and gave $20 because his mother’s name is Therese, and he felt a special connection to St. Therese,” Maccarone said.

She said news that Rice Bowls had been among the items stolen even prompted a nearby Rock for Hunger fundraiser to offer proceeds from the event intended to support local food banks.

“We had to turn them down,” Maccarone said. “We appreciated their thoughtfulness, but we told them the parish would take care of (the missing Rice Bowl donations).”

Maccarone said as a result of the burglaries, the parish has installed a new security system and a new safe, and electronic collection giving has increased.

“Having the community reach out was a good thing, but it was also a wake-up call for our parishioners, living in ‘safe’ Shelby Township,” she said.

“Their sense of security was threatened,” she added. “There will be great relief now that they have been caught.”