Posted on 03/19/2010 10:56:37 AM PDT by 1curiousmind
I was just informed of a troubling incident that took place at my church yesterday. A young middle-eastern man came in and asked about our church including questions like "Are your services normally full?" When given a diagram of the building (commonly done to help visitors find their way around) he apparently "lit up" a little. He then left in a blue four door sedan that was waiting for him outside.
No one wants to jump to conclusions but we also want to be vigilant and aware. I'm sharing this here since I know alot of FReepers are church-goers. Maybe something similarly odd has happened at another church in recent days. Just wanting to share information.
Its good to be a little extra aware. Especially since this happened a few weeks before Easter. Last Easter, there were plans to attack London during the Easter holiday.
My church is a large evangelical church in the midwest.
I would expect most churches to be full on Easter.
Does your state have Concealed Carry? If so, it can’t hurt to have some licensed carriers at services. Most likely it is nothing, but better safe than sorry.
Let me just add that no one is panicking. And we do have members and attenders that are middle-eastern. Apparently there was something about the way he acted that was suspicious.
You do live in a heavily Islamo area..I would be very careful.
I got an email from an uncle of mine in the midwest that said almost word for word what this post says.
I would report it to the FBI and have some form of discrete security over the next several weeks including Easter.
Security cameras are becoming a new norm for places of worship due to theft. Some parishioners don’t like them but they are necessary.
Of course it was terrorist.
Trust your instincts and discernment.
Notify officials, though they will likely do nothing but escort the terrorists to the attack.
Prepare for the worst, hope for the best.
I’d definitely encourage the ushers to be packing, as well as anyone else that is legally able to do so. Might not be anything to this, but on the other side maybe there is. Don’t be a soft target.
You need some manners at that church. Whoever greeted him should have said, “Hello, I’m ___. Welcome to our church. What is your name? Would you please sign our guestbook?” No name, no sig, big fat clue. And someone should have written down his license plate number. Got a surveillance camera in your parking lot? No? How come?
It’s an odd question. While it may mean nothing, remember that many people have ignored odd comments and occurences that later turned out to be significant, like not caring about learning how to land a plane, just fly one. A little paranoia is called for in these times. Anyone looking for a church to join is going to be concerned about the character of the congregation, not the seating arrangements.
I would expect a large evangelical church in the midwest to have a number of armed members. Also to let everyone know of the incident.
Of course, my expectations have been unmet many times in the past.
Also report to local LEOs. They can arrange for a patrol car to keep an eye open, especially during Masses. And, as someone else commented, if you are able, Carry Concealed. Don’t expect the Feds under Ubama to do much for you.
Report it to the FBI. It’s just another piece of intelligence. You aren’t aware of other pieces of intel that might have been similar to yours that have been reported.
You have to report it. If it is nothing, and nothing happens, no big deal. If you don’t, and some other church gets bombed, you’ll not be able to live with yourself.
Reporting it costs you exactly zero. I used to work in that line of business, and believe me, report it.
If they are worth their salt, they’ll take the information, leave, and they’ll put it on the table with the rest of the puzzle pieces.
Who ever takes the information is just going to take it, and not comment, except to say, “You did exactly the right thing.” You won’t get any more information from him about other reports, and you won’t get a follow up. Fact is, you don’t want one. It means they are keeping their mouths shut, and they aren’t spreading panic.
Call it in. Local FBI office, not local law enforcement. Local LE’s don’t have the intel capability to do much with it, and they are busy.
I think churches are becoming more security aware than before. I notice that ushers are becoming more proactive, looking people over as they come in while greeting them. I’ve noticed that if someone starts acting oddly the ushers start to quietly converge.
And at least at our church law officers are encouraged to carry. We have at various times had uniformed security but not always, maybe just when there has been a specific threat. But we have people out in the parking lot all through the service, and they all have radios.
May sound silly, but my grandson (close to six foot tall) came to church on a warm summer day wearing his favorite full length coat (it was a present). My other grandson working in the audio-visual room heard radio traffic pointing him out, and sure enough the ushers converged to have a closer look at him all while greeting him. Someone wearing a long coat on a hot day looks odd, I admit.
Jus' sayin' ...
That would be illegal in Virginia, so I don't do it.
A police report was filed. Security cameras are being reviewed to see if anything else suspicious appears.
We do have a handful of armed security personnel (discreet of course)
This was not on a Sunday, but a weekday morning. So a few women happened to be there when he came in.
Again, a 99% chance it was nothing. But I thought that if there happened to be similar events elsewhere, that might point to something serious.
Ping
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