Tuesday April 12, 2011
BRATTLEBORO -- A Brattleboro computer store was burglarized late Friday night after police responded to an alarm on Birge Street.
According to Brattleboro police, burglars forced their way into a side door at Brown Computer Solutions and made off with an estimated 22 laptops and other merchandise in the store.
"There was a significant amount of laptops that were stolen," said Brattleboro Detective Lt. Michael Carrier. "They weren’t in there that long. The burglar alarm came in and it was a rapid response by the police department so they were in and out of there in a very short period of time."
Patrick Brown of the computer store said more than $30,000 of inventory was stolen before the vandals fled the scene. He said the alarm monitoring company alerted him of the incident shortly after 10:30 p.m. on April 8.
"This is the first professional hit. We’ve had kind-of mischievous break-ins, but this was the first major hit," he said. Brown said after viewing the camera footage, it appears the suspects known exactly what they were looking for inside.
"They were well disguised and well organized. They walked right by perfectly good demonstration unit [of] I-Pads running demos because they knew what they were heading for," he said. "They headed directly to a stock closet that’s no longer there and took everything."
Brown’s insurance will cover the theft, but the store is offering a $1,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible for the burglary.
Carrier said police have obtained the surveillance camera from Brown and are reviewing the footage for possible leads on the suspects. Police also believe the thieves used a vehicle because of the amount of computers taken, but do not have a description at this time.
"It is still early in the investigation. We’re still processing evidence that was collected at the scene, which includes looking at that surveillance video as well," Carrier said.
The serial numbers of the stolen laptops were reported stolen as well.
Brown Computer Solutions has reported several smaller-scale thefts in the last few years, some of which were minor burglaries that has led police to arrests through the surveillance system.
In August 2008, a couple was arrested after breaking into the store, threatening Brown and fleeing the area with a high-resolution computer and printer. Both suspects were apprehended and charged with burglary and attempting to elude.
Anyone with information regarding this theft, or people who may have seen anything suspicious, is asked to contact the Brattleboro police at 802-257-7950 or the TIPSLINE at 802-251-8188.
Chris Garofolo can be reached at cgarofolo@reformer.com or 802-254-2311 ext. 275.