Lexington County (WLTX) -- Lexington deputies say a 40-year-old man who broke into a Chapin church to steal hot dogs jumped through a stained-glass window in an effort to elude authorities.
Lexington County Sheriff’s Department deputies arrested 40-year-old Joseph Rodney Rhett on Wednesday after they say he broke into Providence AME Chruch on Meadowlark Road in Chapin.
Rhett is charged with second-degree burglary and is being held at the Lexington County jail.
Investigators say Rhett rode a bicycle to the church before 11 p.m. Tuesday night. They say he broke into the church at about that time, when they received a call during the burglary.
Officers from several agencies responded with a K-9 officer to the church.
Two citizens told Lexington County sheriff’s deputies that they heard noise from a window being broken at the church.
Investigators say the citizens told them Rhett jumped out of a stained-glass window near the rear of the church, and ran into a wooded area nearby.
Deputies say Rhett used a ladder to reach the window that he broke at the church.
Investigators, with the help of the K-9 officer, were able to track Rhett to a mobile home on Lazy Brook Drive in Chapin.
Deputies say Rhett stole a pack of hot dogs from the church during the break-in.