Thief Who Allegedly Stole Statue of Saint From Church Falls and Gets Injured by the Angel's Sword

An aspiring thief who tried to steal a statue of St. Michael from a church in Mexico botched the job and fell onto the angel's sword, injuring himself. His explanation: He was drunk. The Catholic News Agency reported this week that in the early hours of Jan. 14, Carlos Alonzo, 32, broke into the Christ the King Parish in Monterrey, Mexico, to rob the church.

But the loot he decided to take didn't come away easily. Read on to find out what happened, and how local residents and social media reacted.  

Local media reported that Alonso jumped a fence in front of the church entrance and broke a glass door to gain entrance. While he was attempting to remove a statue of St. Michael the Archangel, Alonso tripped and fell on the angel's sword, seriously injuring his neck. Passers-by spotted the wounded man at the church doors and called for medical attention.

Monterey police had to cut the padlock on the church's main gate to reach Alonso. But doing so enabled them to save the would-be thief's life. After he was stabilized on the scene, the first responders took Alonso to a local hospital.

He's expected to be referred to the local prosecutor's office and potentially charged for damaging the church. The state of St. Michael, local media reported, was unharmed.

In Judeo-Christian tradition, St. Michael is depicted as a leader of the angels. In Hebrew, "Michael" means "who is like God." In the Bible, Michael is described as a warrior who leads God's army against the forces of evil. He is often depicted holding a sword. It's with that instrument he returns to Earth during the end times and slays the devil himself. "Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels. And the dragon lost the battle, and he and his angels were forced out of heaven," reads Revelation 12:7-8.

Local residents considered the robber's injury a matter of divine retribution. A nearby shop owner named Lupita told ABC Noticias that Alonso deserved his injuries and considered it an act of God. "That happened to him for doing bad things," she said. "Saint Michael is for protection, to combat evil, I think that's why that happened to him."

This isn't the first robbery attempt at the church in recent months—in October, another potential robber attempted to nab a statue of an altar boy. He was arrested after police spotted him carrying the statue away from the church, ABC Noticias reported.

"Never mess with archangels with swords!" advised one Twitter commenter. "St Michael defender of the church," another pointed out.  "Glad the guy didn't die. May God favor his wellbeing and redemption forever.  May I be permitted my initial 'heh'?" said another.