Man charged in connection with attempted child abduction incident at West Bromwich church

Police arrested Moses Berhe in connection with the incident at Holy Trinity Church in West Bromwich after officers were called to the place of worship in Burlington Road on Saturday.

The 24-year-old has now been charged with taking a child so as to keep him/her from a person having lawful control and appeared before Wolverhampton Magistrates' Court on Monday.

He was remanded into custody and will next appear at Wolverhampton Crown Court on March 31 for a plea hearing. 

A spokesman for West Midlands Police earlier said: " Moses Berhe, aged 24, from West Bromwich, has been charged with taking a child so as to keep him/her from a person having lawful control.

"He has been remanded in custody to appear at Wolverhampton Magistrates Court today (3 Mar).

"This comes after we were called to a church on Burlington Road, West Bromwich just before 12.40pm on Saturday (1 Mar) following a report of an attempted child abduction.

"Thankfully, the child was not injured and we're continuing to offer support to the child and her family."

A spokesman for Lichfield Diocese said: “We are thankful that the apparent alleged abduction of a child at a West Bromwich church yesterday failed because of the vigilance, courage and skill of members of the congregation and clergy.

"The response of the vicar and others was fully in line with diocesan policies and protocols for dealing with incidents of this nature in its handling of the event and the follow up, both of a very high standard.

"Those involved in this traumatic incident are also being prayed for and ministered to as they seek to recover, drawing on their Christian faith and the supportive relationships in the congregation. 

"Our primary concern remains for their safety and the safety of all visitors to our church. 

"The mother, father and child involved remain in a vulnerable state and wish only to be left alone to recover and to be cared for pastorally.”