Set of valuable brass bells stolen from in front of Russian Orthodox church

8/27/2012

OLMSTED FALLS, Ohio — Someone has stolen five large brass bells worth thousands of dollars from in front a Russian Orthodox church in northeastern Ohio.

The (Cleveland) Plain Dealer reports that the set of bells was taken sometime after Sunday afternoon services from in front of St. Innocent Orthodox Church in the Cleveland suburb of Olmsted Falls.

The church's priest, the Rev. Dr. Michael Butler, said the bells were imported from Russia at a cost of about $5,500 six years ago. They weigh 60 to 70 pounds each.

They were a gift to the church donated in memory of a parishioner's husband. Butler said they were hanging from a wooden frame that sat on the ground, and the frame had been cut. The church has no security cameras.