16.07.2026 16:51
In the İnegöl district of Bursa, a thief smashed a donation box in a mosque with a paving stone and stole approximately 100 thousand TL before fleeing. The incident was captured on security cameras, while association officials stated that they are in a difficult situation.
In the İnegöl district of Bursa, a suspect broke the locks of a donation box in a mosque with a paving stone and stole approximately 100,000 TL before fleeing. The moment of theft was captured by security cameras.
HE STRUGGLED FOR MINUTES TO BREAK THE LOCK
The incident occurred around 07:00 at Yokuşlar Mosque in the Fatih neighborhood of İnegöl district. After entering the mosque, the suspect left his shoes in the shoe rack and wandered around for a while. Spotting the donation box, he first tried to open the locks on it. Failing to open the box, the suspect left the mosque and retrieved a paving stone from the street. Re-entering the mosque with the stone, he struck the locks of the donation box for about 15 minutes, breaking them.
HE STOLE 100,000 TL
The suspect filled a bag he found in the mosque with approximately 100,000 TL from the box, which was reported to consist of two months' worth of donations, and then left the scene. Shortly after, the imam and association officials arriving at the mosque noticed the broken donation box and reported the situation to the 112 Emergency Call Center. Upon the report, police teams arrived at the scene and examined the security cameras, while crime scene investigation teams conducted evidence work. The moment of the incident was also captured by the mosque's security cameras.
"WE ARE IN A VERY DIFFICULT SITUATION"
Reacting to the theft, Ahmet Yıldırım, a board member of the Yokuşlar Mosque Preservation Association, said, "We are building a Quran course. We had debts of 74,000 lira from last year. We issued a check for 74,000 lira. We hadn't opened the box for two months to pay this money. In the morning theft, it's all gone. We are in a very difficult situation. Our relationship with the person we got the check from has soured. We can't ask that person to help us again. So this incident has put us in a tough spot."
Police teams have launched an investigation to identify and capture the fleeing suspect.