Man accused of stealing from churches along East Coast arrested in Rowan County

ROWAN COUNTY, N.C. — A man who deputies said is known along the East Coast for allegedly breaking into churches and stealing music equipment has been arrested for the same crime in Rowan County.

Mykal Othnel Charter was arrested Monday, according to the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office. He’s been charged with felony breaking and entering a place of worship, felony larceny after breaking and entering, and misdemeanor injury to real property.

Deputies said he broke into Trading Ford Baptist Church on July 16 and stole a keyboard worth $3,300.

According to investigators, Charter has the same set of charges pending in Rowan County from incidents at two other churches: Cornerstone Pentecostal Church on Webb Road and the Ark Fellowship Church in Kannapolis.

“If we saw him today, we’d let them know listen, ‘We’re praying for you,’” said Rev. Brandon Levi Spiker, with Cornerstone Church.

Spiker chose to give grace to a man deputies say stole an $8,000 keyboard from the church in May.

“This is an opportunity to turn your life around, give it to God, and do the right thing,” Spiker said. “The community’s been very upset about it.”

In May, the church’s security cameras captured images of a suspect and vehicle.

Deputies say the images helped lead to Charter’s arrest.

“We are we’re not upset with him,” Spiker said. “We know things happen. We know people go through things in life.”

Rowan County Chief Deputy Jason Owens said it’s been upsetting for investigators, as well.

“We find it hard to believe anybody could stoop so low as to break into a religious facility or in church,” Owens said.

Many thieves find a niche, he said.

“If you want to call it that, to where they know what they’re stealing is lucrative,” Owens said.

Law enforcement agencies up and down the East Coast believe Charter could be linked to similar crimes as far south as Florida.

Authorities said Charter also has pending charges for the same crimes in Gaston, Brunswick, Randolph, Wake, Cumberland, and Durham counties, as well as the state of Virginia.

The new charges add $30,000 to his existing bonds, which total $348,000, the Rowan County Sheriff’s Office said.

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