Rash of break-ins has some worried in Lehigh

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LEHIGH ACRES, Fla. Denise Finley showed up to pray Wednesday morning at St. Raphael’s Catholic Church.

But when she pulled up and saw no one there, she was too scared to get out of her car, cognizant of the crime in the area.

“Church is a place of comfort, and you should feel secure,” Finley said.

Bernie Shane, 40, of DeSoto Avenue, was arrested and accused of burglary and grand theft after the church, a prominent local fixture on 2514 Lee Blvd., was ransacked overnight Tuesday. The church requires $15,000 to $20,000 in repairs, a maintenance official there said.

It’s among a string of crimes in Lehigh Acres that has many community members like Finley worried.

Last week, a father was accused of shooting and killing his son on the 4600 block of 28th Street Southwest. Two were killed at a home on the 3100 block of Third Street West. And a shooting near a 7-Eleven at Lee and Sunshine boulevards left one person hurt.

Arrests made in attempted home burglaries

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