Overview

• Aldo Hernandez, 26, was arraigned on June 16 for second-degree criminal mischief after toppling two religious statues valued at $10,000 during a Spanish-language Eucharist at Corpus Christi Church.
• The targeted sculptures—a 110-year-old Sacred Heart statue and a Virgin Mary statue—each carried a $5,000 value and held deep significance for the parish community.
• Surveillance footage shows Hernandez shouting that the statues represented “false religion” before pushing them off the altar and triggering intervention by worshippers.
• A judge ordered Hernandez to stay away from the church, the pastor’s home and workplace, suspended any license to carry firearms and released him without bail.
• Authorities have yet to determine a motive for the outburst, which follows a surge in vandalism against Catholic sites nationwide.