OAKLAND – Two men have been arrested in connection with a string of church burglaries in central Maine that police say were motivated in part by one suspect’s dislike of churches.

Brad Andrews Joyce, 20, of Oakland and Eric Mercier, 20, of Waterville face charges of burglary and theft for allegedly stealing about $30,000 worth of electronics and causing thousands of dollars in damage by smashing furniture, spray-painting walls and soiling carpets.

The burglaries took place in May and June at churches in Madison, Oakland, Canaan and Skowhegan and at a Christian school in Canaan. The thieves sometimes made several trips in a single night to haul away the loot in a tiny Geo Metro two-door car, investigators said.

Police say Joyce had a “personal vendetta” against churches, but they wouldn’t say how that came about.

“Nobody expects anybody to break into a church and do what they did,” said state Trooper Bernard Brunette. “This is new for me, and I believe it is new for the other investigators.”

“He just specialized in churches; that was his thing,” said Detective Sgt. Rick Stubbert of the Oakland Police Department. Stubbert said Joyce did not elaborate on why he doesn’t like churches. Mercier apparently has not discussed his motivation.

The arrests came after police obtained warrants, searched the homes of the two suspects, and found much of the stolen equipment in storage.

After Michael Ross of the Skowhegan Police Department relayed a tip on the identity of the burglars last week, Stubbert went through Joyce’s trash and found wrappers from an uncommon brand of turkey bologna that apparently had been stolen during one of the burglaries.

“Everything came together over just a couple of hours,” Ross said.

Burglary targets include the Canaan Calvary Church, the Canaan Christian School, the Faith Baptist Church in Skowhegan, the Daystar Deliverance Chapel in Madison and Mountaintop Christian Fellowship Church in Oakland.