Arrest warrant issued for suspected mosque burglar

An arrest warrant has been issued for a man sought for his alleged involvement in the burglary of Islamic worship centers in both Maricopa and Chandler in March.

Arizona Attorney General Mark Brnovich handed down an arrest warrant Nov. 3 for Andrew Charles Chambers for allegedly breaking into the Islamic religious centers and stealing money from donation boxes.

Detectives from both the Maricopa and Chandler police departments reviewed surveillance footage from both mosques and were able to identify Chambers as the alleged burglar, the AG’s office said in a press release.

On the evening of March 30 and morning of March 31, Chambers allegedly broke into the Masjid Bilal Rabah Mosque in Maricopa and the Islamic Center of the East Valley in Chandler and stole an unknown amount of money.

Though neither mosque could say the exact amount stolen, charges indicate that somewhere between $2,000-3,000 was taken from one site, and less than $1,000 was taken from the other.

The warrant, issued out of Maricopa County Superior Court, contains a total of eight charges against Chambers – two counts of third degree burglary, class 4 felonies, two counts of possession of burglary tools, class 6 felonies, two counts of aggravated criminal damage, class 6 felonies, and two counts of theft, one class 5 felony and one class 1 misdemeanor.

If convicted, Chambers faces up to seven years in prison.

Chambers is wanted by authorities in both Alabama and Virginia for allegedly committing similar crimes, the release said. He was arrested in 2013 in Virginia for allegedly breaking into a Woodbridge mosque but fleeing after realizing the building was occupied. He was described as 6-foot-4, 225 pounds and at the time was driving a truck with North Dakota plates.

His whereabouts are currently unknown.

Authorities claim he could be using multiple aliases including Martin Andrew, Flint Frank, Andy Chambers, Flint Franks, Steven Franks, Andrew Ghambers and Flint O’Neil.

Anyone with information on the whereabouts of Chambers is urged to contact the Arizona Attorney General’s Office or the Maricopa and Chandler Police Departments.