Two men wearing stocking masks entered a church during a meeting of missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, bound the group at gunpoint and robbed them, police said.
After the robbery Tuesday, two of the 16 victims were able to free themselves and call police.The robbers, who were carrying semiautomatic handguns, entered the church at about 10 a.m. and held the group for about an hour, Fairfield police said. They remained at large Wednesday, said Lt. Terry L. Thomas.
The young missionaries were robbed of their personal belongings before the gunmen fled.
Two of the missionaries called police from a nearby school after they struggled free, broke a window and climbed out. They suffered minor cuts, Thomas said.
Police first feared the young men were being held hostage and used dogs to scour the building, but the robbers already had fled.
The lieutenant said he was somewhat baffled at why the robbers would target the missionaries, who live frugally while on their proselytizing missions.
"One had 28 dollars," Thomas said. "It doesn't make a lot of sense to do something of this magnitude for what you're going to gain."
Don LeFevre, a spokesman at the LDS Church's Salt Lake headquarters, said the missionaries are serving in the California Santa Rosa Mission.
He identified the Utahns as Michael Jorgensen of Orem, Kime Kinikini of West Valley, Jonathan Redford of Sandy, Aaron Gull of Spanish Fork, Matthew Urry of Woods Cross and David Jensen of North Ogden.