VERMONT COMPUTERS STOLEN FROM HIGH SCHOOL FOUND ON EBAY Burlington Free Press.com | Local/Vermont: "und on Web site

Published: Thursday, January 25, 2007
By Ashley Matthews
Free Press Staff Writer

A former Champlain Valley Union High School student and a 17-year-old, both of Fairfax, have been accused of breaking into the high school and stealing dozens of laptop computers and other technology.

Hinesburg Community Police Officer Barbara Brisson said former CVU student Randy Gonzalez, 20, and another man, whom police did not identify, smashed a glass door at CVU on Dec. 5 and took about 26 laptops and two wireless laptop carts. Brisson said most of the stolen computers were valued at more than $1,000 each. The two men sold some of the equipment on the Internet auction site eBay, Brisson said.

Police said they are working to recover the computers from people who purchased them online. Computers were purchased by people in Georgia, California, Kentucky and Massachusetts, they said.

Police have accused Gonzalez and the other man with possession of stolen property, but said additional allegations might be pending. Gonzalez received a citation to appear in court Feb. 26. The other man received a juvenile petition.

CVU Principal Sean McMannon said the school is working with its insurance company to replace the stolen computers. He said they constituted about a quarter of the school's laptops.

"The big problem was we lost the ability for a number of classes to have access to those carts," he said. Wireless laptop carts contain a charging station and connect to the campus network, wirelessly. The cart is used to provide mobile computing capabilities.

"Teachers had planned classes around them and expected to have use of that technology and then suddenly a considerable number of our laptops were not available," McMannon said.

Hinesburg Community Police, the Vermont State Police and members of CVU's information technology staff contributed to the investigation.

Contact Ashley Matthews at 651-4811 or amatthews@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com. "