MASSACHUSETTS COMPUTERS STOLEN Pricey Equipment Stolen From Community Center - Boston News Story - WCVB Boston:

Pricey Equipment Stolen From Community Center
Dorchester's Baker House Hit By Thieves

BOSTON -- A Dorchester community center was struck by thieves on Monday night, according to a published report.Someone broke into the Ella J. Baker House on Washington Street and stole computers, a flat-screen TV, a DVD player and other equipment, the Boston Globe reported. The stolen items were used by the center for its work with area youths.

Police said that the thief may be familiar with the center because the person knew where the equipment was stored.

Last year, a fire caused about $150,000 worth of damage to the center. Police believe it was arson, but no arrests were made. Sections of the house remain shut down because of that fire.

COLORADO COMPUTERS STOLEN Blotter, July 15, 2009:

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Thief steals from church

A thief stole more than $1,000 in electronics Tuesday morning from the Northeast Christian Church, 2001 Patterson Road, according to the Grand Junction Police Department.

At approximately 2:30 a.m., officers were dispatched to the church after a burglar alarm went off.

A member of the church said at least five laptop computers, a video projector and a video-game console were stolen. There were no reports of damages, according to the Police Department.

TEXAS (UPDATE) COMPUTER STOLEN WAS NOT MAINFRAME Tyler Paper - Tyler Morning Telegraph:

UPDATE: Computer Theft at East Texas Campus Was Not Mainframe
From staff and wire reports

An Associated Press report that thieves had stolen the mainframe computer with student information from the Palestine campus of Trinity Valley Community College is incorrect, according to the college's public information officer.

Jennifer Hannigan told TylerPaper.com the computer stolen was 'used only for our computer surveillance system,' adding that it contained no student or personnel records.'

Anderson County Sheriff Greg Taylor told the Palestine Herald-Press says the break-in happened over the weekend, with a back door pried open."

MINNESOTA COMPUTERS STOLEN Thieves strike U Radisson, local church | mndaily.com - Serving the University of Minnesota Since 1900:

Thieves strike U Radisson, local church
Subhead:
Three computers and a TV were stolen from the Radisson on Washington Avenue.

BY Robert Downs
PUBLISHED: 07/14/2009

Thieves made off with a 42-inch plasma television and three computers from the Radisson Hotel on Washington Avenue early Saturday night, each from areas available only to residents and employees, according to a police report.

The television was stolen from the hotel’s exercise room, and the computers from the public office area. It is not known if an employee is responsible, Radisson general manager Matt Monchamp said.

“We’ll leave it up to the police to decide,” he said.

Surveillance cameras captured footage of the suspects getting into a car with the electronics and driving away. However, the license plate could not be discerned and the suspects were not recognized, University of Minnesota police Lt. Troy Buhta said.

Once footage is sent to University police, images of suspects are passed around to officers, who may have dealt with them before, Buhta said.

Also, the images may be sent to a metro-wide database in attempts to match the image with a known criminal.

“It’s going to be pretty hard to track down a vehicle with no plate,” Buhta said, “as well as the people if we’ve never dealt with them before.”

Fingerprints were recovered from a knife found in the exercise room trash bin, which was used to break the television off the wall, the police report stated. The Bureau of Criminal Apprehension could take as long as a year to process the prints, Buhta said.

“The BCA is very busy,” he said. “Also, prints from violent crimes take precedent over property crimes.”

The public office at the hotel remained closed as of Tuesday.

OHIO COMPUTERS STOLEN Laptops stolen from Springfield schools:

Laptops stolen from Springfield schools

By Megan Gildow, Staff Writer 6:05 PM Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Ten laptop computers stolen from Keifer Alternative School June 30 contained information about students with disabilities, but not social security numbers, Springfield City Schools Interim Superintendent Don Thompson said.

The district sent letters home to parents of students who were affected following the theft, said Thompson. The laptops belonged to employees of the district’s special education department, including psychologists, which relocated to Keifer as part of a plan to move all administrative offices out of the South High School building.

There have been no arrests, said Lt. Jim Hutchins of the Springfield Division of Police.

The building was broken into overnight and the thefts were reported to police early the next morning, he said.

“They’re still actively investigating,” he said.

There is no indication that the thieves targeted the specific computers and information but more likely stole the laptops because they are easy to carry and sell, Hutchins said.

About 10 parents have contacted the district about the matter, Thompson said.

Contact this reporter at (937) 328-0373 or mgildow@coxohio.com.

SOUTH AFRICA SCHOOL COMPUTERS STOLEN The Citizen: Five held over stolen school computers:

Published: 7/14/2009 18:32:55

Five held over stolen school computers

JOHANNESBURG - Four men and a woman were arrested in Katlehong, east of Johannesburg for possession of computers stolen from a primary school on Tuesday, police said.

Police in the Free State reported that the computers were stolen from the Thaba Bosiu primary school in Qwaqwa and were taken to Gauteng, said Captain Ephraim Shezi.

“The six computers were recovered from different places in Katlehong. Some were found in Moleleki extension 1, Mofokeng and Likule sections.”

The five suspects, with ages ranging from 19 to 54, were handed over to the Qwaqwa police and would appear in the Qwaqwa Magistrate’s Court to face charges oftheft.

They would later appear in the Katlehong Magistrate’s Court to face charges of possession of stolen goods, said Shezi.

- Sapa

TEXAS (UPDATE) TVCC COMMENTS ON RECENT COMPUTER THEFT TVCC News:

No information stolen during weekend theft
Monday, July 13, 2009 /

We here at Trinity Valley Community College are saddened and angered by the events of this weekend’s break-in at TVCC-Palestine.

We want to assure our students that absolutely no student, personnel or other confidential information was contained on the computer stolen during the weekend theft. The terminal which was taken was wired only to the security surveillance system and was used specifically for surveillance video. TVCC takes all possible precautions to maintain the security and confidentiality of personal data.

In the aftermath of this event, we are dedicated to recovering the stolen property. The college is working diligently with the Anderson County Sheriff’s Office to apprehend those who are responsible for this incident. We are asking anyone who may have information on the theft to please contact the sheriff’s department.

Students should watch our website at www.tvcc.edu for more information as it develops.

GEORGIA COMPUTERS STOLEN Apparent Break-in at Wonderroot Community Center:

Apparent Break-in at Wonderroot Community Center

According to an email from the Wonderroot Community Center, someone broke in and stole their computers, thus causing them to temporarily close their digital lab. APN previously ran a lovely feature on Wonderroot.

“Due to a break-in at the WonderRoot Community Arts Center over the past weekend, the Digital Media Lab will be temporary closed. We are sad to say that all five computers were taken,” the organization said.

“However, we are working hard to replace them and feel confident that the lab will reopen shortly with newer and better equipment. If you have questions or want information about the robbery, please feel free to contact us. Thanks to everyone who recognizes WonderRoot as a community space and helps to take care of the facilities.”

Posted under crime

This post was written by Matthew Cardinale on July 13, 2009

TEXAS COMPUTER STOLEN The Palestine Herald, Palestine, Texas - Mainframe computer stolen from local TVCC campus:

Published: July 13, 2009 08:45 pm

Mainframe computer stolen from local TVCC campus

By PAUL STONE
The Palestine Herald
PALESTINE — A “mainframe computer” containing confidential student information was stolen over the weekend from the Palestine campus of Trinity Valley Community College, according to local authorities.

Anderson County Sheriff Greg Taylor told the Herald-Press Monday that the computer was stolen from an office inside the Anderson Building at the rear of the campus which is located on Texas 19, north of the Palestine city limits. The building houses the college’s EMT, cosmotology and nursing classes, he added.

The sheriff said the break-in apparently occurred sometime between 10 a.m. Friday and 8 a.m. Monday when it was discovered by a school employee.

Taylor said the computer included student and class information, including grades.

“Unfortunately, there’s personal information on there,” the sheriff said.

Also reported stolen from a separate office in the same building was $30 cash and a $200 check, according to Taylor.

Additionally, a glass container filled with urine was discovered in the office where the money was stolen, according to the sheriff.

The suspect(s) gained entry into the Anderson Building by prying open a back door, according to Taylor.

“There was some evidence removed at the scene,” Taylor said. “We don’t have any named suspects at this time.”

Estimated amount of damage was unknown as of mid-afternoon Monday.

“Of course, they cut a lot of wires (to take the mainframe computer),” the sheriff said. “There will be a lot of damage.”

-------

Paul Stone may be contacted via e-mail at pstone@palestineherald.com

ALABAMA COMPUTERS STOLEN Huntsville police blotter - Breaking News from The Huntsville Times - al.com:

North precinct

Crestview Drive: Burglars stole electronics and other items from three homes on the 3000 block. A laptop computer worth $700, a portable DVD player worth $110 and clothes worth $400 were stolen from one home. Two DVD players worth $325, a television worth $90 and a receiver worth $250 were stolen from a second home. Two laptop computers worth $2,000 and a stereo worth $200 were stolen in a third home.

Medaris Road: A laptop computer and girls clothing, the values of which were withheld, were stolen in a home burglary.