Man accused of causing nearly $18K of damage in string of LDS church burglaries

Derick Fox
·2 min read

EAGLE MOUNTAIN, Utah (ABC4) — A South Jordan man is facing several felony charges of burglary and property damage after allegedly breaking into 10 LDS Churches throughout Eagle Mountain in one night.

According to court documents, Lee Pierce Baker, 20, began a string of burglaries of churches in Eagle Mountain on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023. Police say Baker and another suspect already in police custody with Salt Lake County forced their way into the churches by breaking exterior doors.

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Once in the churches, authorities claim Baker and the other suspect would steal donations and “whatever they could find” to sell. The impacted churches were located at:

  • 4338 East Inverness Lane

  • 3793 East Rose Hearty Lane

  • 87321 North Desert Canyon Road

  • 4588 North Eagle Mountain Boulevard

  • 7944 North Smith Ranch Road

  • 2011 East Oquirrh Ranch Parkway

  • 7746 North Sparrowhawk Way

  • 2977 East Saddle Rock Road

  • 4105 Smith Ranch Road

  • 8285 North Porter’s Crossing

In most churches, police said they did not find anything stolen, however, in some cases tithing and donation slips were taken along with a safe, a laptop, and a tablet. Police estimated the break-ins did nearly $18,000 in damages.

Through their investigation, detectives say Baker’s phone matched the location of nearly all the burglarized churches in Eagle Mountain. Baker was later found and safely taken into custody and allegedly admitted to breaking into some of the churches but did not remember all of them.

Police say Baker is also suspected of several dozen other burglaries throughout Salt Lake and Utah County. According to court documents, Baker had plans to flee Utah to Texas in an attempt to avoid law enforcement capture.

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Baker is facing 10 third-degree felony charges of burglary, nine third-degree felony charges of property damage, one misdemeanor charge of property damage, and four misdemeanor charges of theft.

Charges are allegations only. All arrested persons are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

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