NEW MEXICO COMPUTERS STOLEN KOB.com - Young teen accused of dozens of burglaries:

Posted at: 03/26/2009 5:59 PM
Updated at: 03/26/2009 7:00 PM
By: Eyewitness News 4


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He is a suspected thief being investigated for 70 different burglaries--but police say he's not even old enough to drive.

Deputies said they can pin several burglaries on the 14-year-old.

The sheriff's department said he may be responsible fore stealing tens of thousands of dollars worth of computers from his own school--only to return again for another theft late last year.

The suspect allegedly told police he was stealing for the thrill of it.

"When we first picked him up, he actually said he was addicted to breaking into homes, that he felt an adrenaline rush when he did these crimes and that he thought he needed help and that he should go to jail," said Santa Fe County Sheriff spokesman Greg Solano.

The teen is believed to have stolen big screen televisions, iPods laptops, and other electronics. Investigators say many of the items were stolen for the suspect's friends.

The suspect also admitted to stealing 27 guns from different homes, deputies say.

After the teen's arrest a few weeks ago, investigators found several computers at his cousin's home and traced them to the Tierra Encantada charter school where they had been stolen in December.

The school's director, Ron Lolordo, said the teen didn't just settle for a few computers.

"It was our entire brand new computer lab for the Spanish language arts program," he said.

Lolordo said the school needed all $40,000 the lab was insured for.

The school's director said he was surprised to hear that the 14-year-old may be connected to the theft, but deputies said they can't directly tie him to the crime just yet.

School officials said the teen is no longer at the school and is due in court in April.