Aquinas sacrilege by “somebody in the know”

by Daniel Spencer

May 13 , 2008

AQUINAS COLLEGE suffered its second sacrilegious act in as many weeks on Friday night, after vandals intruded on the unlocked school chapel and ruined religious motifs.

The damage is set to cost the college $50,000 in repairs, and expensive security measures are now being implemented.

The culprits walked into the unsecured college chapel, pulled tenor strings out of the organ and damaged sacramental flames and vases.

The attack then turned to the college’s administration building, where the offender(s) smashed seven windows.

Groundsman at the prestigious Catholic Boys School, Frank Courtney, said the perpetrators knew a thing or two about Aquinas.

“We can assume lots of things,” Mr Courtney said. “But [the offenders] knew where the key was for the tabernacle and the safe.

“We believe it was somebody in the know.”

The vandalism follows a more serious attack last week, when culprits smashed communion lights, pulled striker hammers out of the chapel piano, and smashed windows around the school with pipes from the chapel organ.

Headmaster Mark Sawle believes the vandalism was an attack on the college’s Catholic faith.

 “There’s no sign of Jesus in here,” Mr Sawle said, referring to the offenders’ mindset when attacking symbols of Catholicism. “Now you’re not going to have any music either.”

He said the attacks had prompted a security review.

“We are changing our measures,” he said. “We will be putting in magnetic doors, possibly cameras and security guards.”

Mr Sawle said the current security measures should have been sufficient.

“Our documentation shows the chapel was locked at 7pm,” he said. “Were people in there at the time?

“We don’t know.”

One pipe organ from the chapel was found near the junior school, at least 50 metres away.

Police were alerted, and are investigating.