OHIO COMPUTERS STOLEN FROM DAY CARE Man Looks Into Security Camera Before Snatching It Down - News: "Man Looks Into Security Camera Before Snatching It Down
Video Captured Culprit On Tape

POSTED: 5:05 pm EST December 11, 2006
UPDATED: 6:19 pm EST December 11, 2006

EAST CLEVELAND, Ohio -- A day-care owner in East Cleveland is fed up and tired of becoming a victim of crime.

Secunda Williams is hoping NewsChannel5 viewers can identify a not-so-clever crook caught on camera.

The culprit stole the Angels In Heaven day care's video camera, but looked directly into the lens before doing so.

On the video, he is seen riding up on a bike. He spots the camera and instead of hiding from it, he stares right into the camera before ripping it off the front of the building.

'He's a dummy for one thing. I mean, why would you try to steal a camera? Obviously, he didn't realize that he was looking at himself the whole time he was doing it,' said Ashley Jenkins, a day care teacher.

The owner of the day care did not want to show her face on camera.

'I feel they have a picture and that we should be able to get him and get him off the street,' Williams said.

She added that she believes the same criminal broke into her day care twice last year, stealing TVs, DVDs, and computers.

"It hurts," Jenkins said. "We have, we do fundraisers and we have all kinds of events to do to get the things that we need for our kids and it's upsetting when people come in and steal our stuff especially that we worked hard for."

The owner spent $3,000 last year on the cameras and an alarm system, hoping to keep the bad element out of her East Cleveland day care that she has run for 25 years.

She said everyone in the area would rest a lot easier if someone could provide a name to the face caught on video. The owner of the day care was also upset that East Cleveland police did not respond sooner to look at her video.

After NewsChannel5 stopped by the police department, an officer went to the day care a half-hour later.

If you recognize the suspect in the video, call Crimestoppers at 216-252-7463. You could get up to $2,000.