Five churches in one county were all broken into, and now some are missing quite a bit of cash.

Police say money is what the thieves were after.

They came away empty-handed from some churches, but made up for it at others.

The break-ins happened sometime between Easter Sunday and the middle of last week. The churches targeted were in Ellsworth, Central Lake, and East Jordan.

The pastor at First Congregational Church in Central Lake says the thief stole a desktop safe and a bag of money full of Easter offerings.

He estimates the intruder stole between 500 and 800 dollars.

Normally, the church will deposit the offerings after each service, but since there were two services on Easter -- some of the offerings got put away in the office.

"They pick the best Sunday of the year, thinking they're going to find a lot of money," says Pastor David Wood at First Congregational Church. "It's disheartening, but I think you understand it based on what's going on in the economy these days."

Police recommend everyone deposit cash immediately.

"I think it's really tough times when someone's breaking into churches," says Antrim County Sheriff Dan Bean.

Anyone with information should call the Antrim County Sheriff's Department.

9&10's Ryan Raiche and Photojournalist Jeremy Erickson have the story.