Man topples and beheads St. Joseph statue inside Église Saint-Henri, Le Creusot

On Tuesday morning, 13 October 2026, shortly before 11 a.m., a 25-year-old man entered the Église Saint-Henri in Le Creusot, Saône-et-Loire, and knocked over a 1.5-metre plaster statue of St. Joseph, breaking off its head, which he then placed on a nearby pew. After leaving the church he bothered several young people, who alerted police, and he was arrested. Police commander Arnaud Plantard said the man, who was heavily intoxicated, incoherent and previously unknown to police, was taken to the Hôtel-Dieu hospital on the prosecutor's order, with transfer to the Sevrey psychiatric hospital planned. The investigation continues.

Deliberate destruction of a statue inside a church. Coordinates are the Nominatim place_of_worship pin for Église Saint-Henri, Le Creusot. Also reported by Le Journal de Saône-et-Loire (https://www.lejsl.com/faits-divers-justice/2026/10/13/un-homme-interpelle-apres-une-statue-detruite-dans-une-eglise-vu-son-etat-de-sante-il-a-ete-conduit-directement-a-l-hopital) and Tribune Chrétienne.