Jiu-jitsu pastor wrestles down burglar who broke into church on Thanksgiving
A pastor trained in Brazilian jiu-jitsu was not what a burglar anticipated facing when he broke into a church on Thanksgiving Day.
Pastor Nick Neves responded to an alarm at First Family Church early on Thursday and came face-to-face with an intruder. The man had broken a window using an axe – but Neves did not back down despite the weapon.
‘When the burglar saw his wicked deeds had been discovered he decided to fight with the pastor instead of repent,’ wrote the Antioch Police Department on Facebook.
‘What he did not know was the pastor would win this battle of good and evil and he held down the perp until APD arrived and placed the man in custody.’
Neves said he has been training in martial arts since he was in high school but never thought he would deploy the skills outside of the facilities dedicated to the sport.
The pastor recounted catching the suspect holding a handful of goods and then telling him he was under citizen’s arrest.
‘He wasn’t having that, so he tried to run, and I restrained him, and he began to fight with me,’ Neves told CNN.
‘And so we tussled for quite a while before the cops were able to get there.’
In pastor-like fashion, Neves said his moves were intended to restrain the man in self-defense and nothing beyond that.
‘It was never my goal to hurt the man or to do him harm,’ he said.
‘I was just hoping to keep him from getting away so that justice could be done and our church could be protected.’
Cops arrived at the scene and arrested the would-be burglar. His identity was not immediately released. He is expected to be charged with burglary, robbery and battery.
‘We are thankful today that the pastor was uninjured during this incident and hopeful that with amazing community members like we have been highlighting lately, we can turn the tide on crime in our city,’ the police department wrote.
The department concluded: ‘But the righteous are as bold as a lion.’
Neves said that even though the suspect caused several thousands of dollars in damages to the church in Antioch, California, he welcomes him to return and sit through a service.
‘If he came to church on Sunday,’ Neves said, ‘I’d be happy to share the gospel with him.’
It is not the only criminal scene to unfold at a place of worship in the US recently.
In May, a gunman entered a church in North Braddock, Pennsylvania, and pointed a gun at the pastor as he was delivering a livestreamed sermon. A deacon grabbed the suspect from behind and pulled him to the floor as the pastor took cover, and no one was injured.
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