TENNESSEE — A Nashville man charged with stealing thousands of dollars in music equipment during two burglaries of the same Hermitage church late last year remains under investigation in connection with similar church burglaries across the area.
Ashanti D. Law, 37, of Harpers Mill Road, is jailed in lieu of $80,000 bond on two counts of burglary, two counts of felony theft and two counts of vandalism. He is accused of breaking into the Una Esperanza Viva Church at 631 Shute Lane November 20th and December 12th and taking a total of six guitars, drums, keyboards, and even an ornamental sword. The collective value of the stolen items is well in excess of $10,000.
The first break in the case came in the early morning hours of November 21st, when Officer Matt Harris came into contact with Law and noticed a number of musical instruments inside his Chevrolet Tahoe. Based on the continuing investigation, police placed a court-ordered tracking device on the SUV. A review of GPS coordinates after the December 12th burglary showed that the Tahoe was parked less than 100 yards from the church between 1:27 a.m. and 1:59 a.m. on that date. A search warrant was executed at Law’s apartment on December 31st, resulting in the recovery of numerous musical instruments and sound system components. Arrest warrants were sworn out charging Law with multiple offenses on December 31st. He remained a fugitive until surrendering at police headquarters Tuesday afternoon.
Any churches in the Nashville area that have lost musical instruments due to theft over the past few months are urged to contact their respective police precincts to determine whether the items were recovered in the search of Law’s apartment on December 31st.
