Two Maryland brothers are behind a Christmas Eve robbery inside a New Freedom church that injured an elderly parishioner, police said.

Southern Regional Police obtained arrest warrants for Victor P. Sorrentino, 57, of Dundalk, and Gregory R. Sorrentino, 54, of Joppa. The brothers will be charged with robbery, conspiracy, simple assault, theft and receiving stolen property.

According to police, the men walked into St. John the Baptist Catholic Church on North Constitution Avenue about 3:30 p.m. Dec. 24.

One of them stole a wallet from inside a purse belonging to a 78-year-old woman who was taking off her jacket and preparing for the church service, police said.

She saw one of the brothers taking her wallet and confronted him,

at which point he shoved her backward into a wall, according to police. The woman fell to the ground and suffered injuries, police said.

The Sorrentino brothers fled the church, according to police, but a detective who'd arrested them years before recognized the description of the church robbers, which is when the brothers became suspects.

After more investigation, police obtained arrest warrants for the brothers.

Anyone with information on their whereabouts is asked to call 911.