BELIZE COMPUTERS STOLEN 7 News Belize:

Burglary at Education Department
posted (July 9, 2009)

It’s old but always sad news to hear of thieves breaking into schools – but now that school’s out – they’re breaking into the Department of Education. They burgled the main office in Belize City earlier this week – and Jacqueline Godwin found out what all they stole.

Jacqueline Godwin Reporting,
These footprints barely visible on the tile floor inside the Belize District Education Centre are probably the only evidence left behind by burglars who broke into the facility sometime between five ten on Tuesday evening and seven forty five the following Wednesday morning. Tonight the over nineteen thousand dollars worth of flat screen computers and accessories remain missing. The equipment was stolen from the office on the ground floor where desks are now bare.

At the rear of the building and resting against the wall below the window the thieves gained access we found the two by four used to pry open the burglar bar and several of the aluminum louvers. The security booth sits just across from one of the rooms the burglars entered but it seems like the watchman had abandoned his guard duty for a while before he returned to the compound.

Leroy Green, Belize District Education Centre
“He was ill from a toothache and he left for about half an hour to get some pills. When he came back around 1:30, every thing was he did not leave again but when he circled the building around minutes to four, that is when he found the broken window."

By then the damage had been done.

Leroy Green,
“When we arrived at work about eight o’clock we found that the building had been broken into and upon entering and looking around we found that several flat screen computers had gone missing. Further search also revealed that along with the computers that were gone was also the only colour printer in the building, a container of colour ink, CDs that I use to erase stuff off computer and reprogram the computer and supplies that had just come the day before including Ovaltine, orange juice, that sort of thing.

They went through almost all the little cubicles, ransacked through everybody’s draw, through things on the floor, took what they wanted. I think one of our employees even had some fruit and they ate the fruit so they had time in there.”

Jacqueline Godwin,
Not only that but the way how it was committed makes you suspect that they were very familiar with the layout of the building.

Leroy Green,
“To be honest my personal gut feeling is that someone who is familiar with the layout of the building and knows exactly where to find certain items if not directly involved, orchestrated the entire thing.”

The computers contain important records that unfortunately will not be easily replaceable.

Leroy Green,
“We are asking the public not to buy any of these computers because to be totally honest they contain things like teacher licenses records, not exams so to speak but a lot of the ones, like the one from our HFLE officer has on all her records from her years dealing with Health and Family Life Education in the country. So it is a big loss to the Ministry and if people buy that, especially at this time when the Ministry is trying to do so much for children in Belize, giving that subsidy and all, to replace $19,000 worth of things is taking a big chunk out of what could have gone further for the development of education. And apart from that, you are encouraging thieves when you buy these stolen goods.”

This is the second education office in three weeks that has been burglarized. Jacqueline Godwin reporting for 7News.

Although the police have been provided with the identity of a suspect since Wednesday there have been no arrests in this case. The Belize District Education Centre sits on a large open property that makes it even more tempting burglars. It is not known if any fence will be erected to enhance security.