Man Steals $800 From Astoria Church Collection Box, Video Shows

ASTORIA, QUEENS — Police are looking for a man who was caught on video stealing hundreds of dollars from an Astoria church's collection box last week.

On Tuesday, Sept. 28, around 4:40 p.m., a man walked into St. George Coptic Orthodox Church, located at 38-25 31st Street.

Then, in an incident captured on video, he walked over to the church's collection box, and took out $800, before leaving the building — all in the light of day.

The video footage, released by the police, shows the man entering the church, stealing the cash, and then leaving.

This isn't the first time this year that an Astoria church made headlines: In May, a Greek Orthodox Easter celebration near Astoria's St. Demetrios Greek Orthodox Cathedral was reported as a dangerous incident online, prompting a conversation among locals about how the neighborhood has changed.

The NYPD asked that information about the burglary at St. George Coptic Orthodox Church call the NYPD's Crime Stoppers Hotline at 1-800-577-TIPS (8477) or for Spanish, 1-888-57-PISTA (74782) or submit a tip online or on Twitter.