Stolen church bell recovered in Jackson County

A 100-pound bell stolen from a Gwinnett County church was located in Jackson County — after exchanging hands from several people in recent days, according to law enforcement reports.

The pastor of Duncan Creek Congregational Church told Gwinnett County police on Wednesday, Jan. 25, that someone stole the bell from a gazebo at the Braselton Highway church. The bell was installed at the church in 2005 in honor of its 150th anniversary.

Several Atlanta-area media outlets reported on the theft and a man in Jefferson heard one of those reports, according to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office.

The anonymous man said he purchased the bell from an antique dealer on Saturday, after the dealer had purchased it from another man in a pickup truck parked at a gas station on Ga. Hwy. 124, according to an incident report.

The dealer initially wanted to sell the bell at an auction, but instead he sold it to the anonymous man for $125, according to the sheriff’s office. The anonymous man then talked to a deputy about the antique bell after hearing about the theft at a Gwinnett County church in a news report.

A deputy returned the bell to the church on Monday afternoon.

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that if the cast-iron bell had been sold for scrap metal, it probably could have only brought in $15.