ILLINOIS COMPUTERS STOLEN Grandview police looking for day-care burglars - Springfield, IL - The State Journal-Register:
Grandview police looking for day-care burglars
Grandview police want help identifying burglars who broke into The Learning Nook daycare center three times within two weeks this summer, stealing everything from snacks and office supplies to computer equipment and keys to the facility’s vans.
To add insult to injury, the culprits have activated the vans’ alarm systems and locks from nearby locations using the swiped keys. They also have used the vans to move the stolen property.
“The only thing we could figure is it was somebody close by, because they were having fun playing with the panic buttons on the doors there,” said Grandview Police Chief Mike Feleccia. “But we’re not sure.”
The first burglary happened between the night of July 14-15. The burglars took a computer, monitor and a radio and removed the tops of the guinea pig cages.
The stolen computer contained personal information about employees and customers, all of whom were notified that they should monitor their credit reports for problems, daycare center owner Lindi Gibson said.
The second burglary happened the night of July 18-19. Again, a desktop computer – the replacement for the one stolen in the first burglary – was taken
“I replaced computers three times,” Gibson said Tuesday. “Now we don’t have any. I bought two laptops for the office, and we’re taking them home.”
Two sets of keys to center vans also were taken in that burglary, and one of the vans had been moved by the thieves. Inside the van, employees found a box of snack cookies and a radio antenna.
“There was stuff in those vans that wasn’t anything of ours,” Gibson said. “They’re probably using my vans to steal from other people.”
The third burglary happened Aug. 7. A neighbor on North Wesley Street called police about 2:10 a.m. after hearing a noise in the empty lot behind his house. When he went outside, people ran from the lot and he found one of the daycare’s vans there.
Police found numerous items missing from the center. Among them were four computer systems and other electronic equipment, 27 computer games, three 3-pound bags of Skittles, a carton of Laffy Taffy, two boxes of Pop Tarts, two bean-bag chairs and a variety of office supplies.
The keys to all the daycare’s vans also were stolen, and the thieves began using them to play pranks.
“You go out there and they’ll start the alarm system or make the locks go up and down,” Gibson said. “You know they’re real close to us that they can do that.”
Gibson had the vans towed away so the ignition systems and locks could be replaced.
Gibson also said she is grateful to her neighbor’s dog, which started barking after hearing noises.
“His dog was going nuts. (The neighbor) saw them, there were lots of them – kids taking stuff up to the door, others throwing it over the fence and a couple others loading it in the vans,” she said.
“That little fox terrier, she was our hero.”
Jayette Bolinski can be reached at 788-1530.
Anyone with information about the burglaries at The Learning Nook, 1628 N. Wolfe St. in Grandview, is urged to call Crime Stoppers at 788-8427. Callers can remain anonymous and are eligible for a reward for information leading to an arrest.
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