WAGENER, S.C. - For a place that's known for its open doors Smyrna Baptist Church has an awful lot of broken windows.

In the past few weeks at least 5 churches in the Wagner-Salley area have been vandalized and burglarized.

“My neighbor came and said Gerald somebody broke into the church,” Gerald Quatterbaum said.

Quatterbaum is a deacon at Smyrna Baptist Church. He's repairing this window thieves shattered at the church Thursday morning.

“It's just disheartening,” Quatterbaum said.

Underneath a black garbage bag is another boarded up broken window. But this one is not from the most recent break-in.

“They hit us again about a week and a half ago,” Quatterbaum said.

They're not alone. Thursday morning Bethcar Baptist in Wagner was also broken into. Over the past few weeks burglars have hit at least three others in the Wagner-Salley area.

“About two weeks ago they said someone was trying to break in our church and the alarm went off and scared them away,” Harold Robinson said.

Robinson's church was hit about two weeks ago. He says he can't believe it.

“When it comes down to breaking in church, it seems they have no respect,” Robinson said.

Quatterbaum agrees.

“Somebody just on a desperate road doing something cause they can or to make a quick buck,” Quatterbaum said.

According to the Aiken County Sheriff's Office the thieves got away with items worth about $2,000 at Smyrna Baptist Church.

The first time they broke in they took a microwave, television, computer and some sound equipment. Several other churches were also robbed of their sound equipment.

Investigators are not saying if these break-ins are linked.

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