KENTUCKY COMPUTER STOLEN FROM COLLEGE Engineering college sees rash of thefts - Campus News

A string of four thefts have occurred in the College of Engineering buildings over the past couple weeks, including two yesterday morning, according to college officials.

All thefts occurred in the middle of the day and objects stolen have ranged from money to a laptop to a multimedia projector from one of the classrooms, said Lynn Tilley, an information technology manager for the EngineeringComputer Center.

Maj. Joe Monroe, interim UK police chief, said UK police are investigating the incidents and that he thought the same person perpetrated all the crimes.

"My gut feeling on this is probably more than likely these thefts are related," Monroe said.

"Every now and then we'll get a rash of thefts in a certain area," he said.

A College of Engineering employee called UK police yesterday morning about a suspicious person described as a black male with a red toboggan, red shirt, dark pants, puffy blue jacket and a tattoo on his neck, according to Monroe.

Monroe said the subject was gone when officers arrived but that UKPD is looking over past incidents in the buildings and past arrests to search for more definite suspects.

"I can't say we have a suspect ID'd," Monroe said. "That's the only lead we have right now."

Three of the thefts took place in the Ralph G. Anderson Building while the multimedia projector was stolen from an F. Paul Anderson Tower classroom, Tilley said. The projector was later recovered in a Business and Economics Building bathroom.

Tilley said he was surprised by the nature of the crimes, specifically how they were committed during mid-day in high-traffic areas.

An e-mail Tilley sent out warning faculty, staff and students about the thefts said one employee had money stolen from an office after "the individual had literally stepped 10 feet down the hall into the neighboring office to ask a question."

The projector took more effort to steal. It was mounted on the ceiling, Tilley said.

"They're pretty determined if they're the same individual," Tilley said of the crimes.

Monroe and Tilley urged everyone in the College of Engineering to keep their valuables secure and keep offices locked when not occupied. Any suspicious activity should be reported immediately to UKPD, Monroe said.