Criminals broke into St Peters ACK church in at Kenol in Maragua, Murang’a County and stole screens, a public address system and other items.

The thieves broke into the church on Tuesday morning after attacking the guards and gained entry.

According to Bishop Julius Karanu of Murang’a South Diocese, the criminals were well conversant with the church surroundings.

Karani suspects the criminals were construction workers or churchgoers.

"We highly suspect this was done by people who have been coming here to worship or work because the church is still under construction," Karani said.

"They might have been around for quite some time because the screens were well secured, and it would have taken time to steal them.”

The thugs went away with four screens, two amplifiers, four speakers and mixers estimated to be over Sh1 million.

The bishop also suspects there is a syndicate targeting churches and has a ready market for the stolen items since that was the fourth incident involving churches.

"We believe there are people who are out to steal the equipment from the church and they appear to have a ready market for them," the bishop says.

The bishop urged the police to conduct a thorough probe and ensure the culprits are apprehended and brought to book.

The guards were rushed to the hospital where they received treatment.