Man accused of stealing sacred items from Portland church arrested

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The suspect accused of being involved in multiple burglaries at St. Michael the Archangel Catholic Church in May has been arrested.

The Portland Police Bureau announced that 33-year-old Portland resident Jacob C. Blanchard was arrested at 8:34 a.m. on Wednesday near Southwest 11th Avenue and Southwest Market Street by Portland State University Campus Public Safety Officers.

Blanchard has been booked into the Multnomah County Detention Center after a warrant for his arrest was issued on June 18, police said.

Last month, some of the sacred items that had been stolen from the church on May 28 were returned . A woman, who wasn’t identified as the burglary suspect, had called the church saying she had the tabernacle and wanted to return it. Police later recovered a stolen monstrance a few days later after serving a search warrant in Southwest Portland, though no arrests were reported at the time.

Blanchard is facing charges that include two counts of first-degree burglary, one count of second-degree burglary, one count of first-degree theft and one count of criminal trespass in the first degree.

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