1888 Book of Mormon stolen from DI store

CENTERVILLE — Police are trying to recover an 1888 edition of the Book

of Mormon that was stolen from a Deseret Industries store here.

The book was stolen from a display case at the DI store earlier this

month. Police said it was donated to DI by The Church of Jesus Christ

of Latter-day Saints' library and archives department.

"The church, on occasion, distributes rare books to the DI to help with

funding the store and clearing room in the archives," Centerville

Police Lt. Paul Child told the Deseret Morning News on Friday.

The book was one of two 1800s-era copies of the Book of Mormon on

display at the DI. They were in a secure glass box. One was purchased

by an LDS Church memorabilia collector; the other vanished on Jan. 17.

It wasn't reported stolen to police until Jan. 23, Child said.

"There are no signs of a break-in," he said. "The employees claim that it (the case) had been left locked."

Investigators are trying to verify if the cabinet really was locked.

They also are looking at the possibility of an inside job.

"We're cooperating fully with police," said LDS Church spokesman Rob Howell.

"We're still trying to determine how the book came to be there."