FLORIDA COMPUTER EQUIPMENT STOLEN FROM COURTHOUSEComputer Theft Disrupts Court theledger.com

Published Saturday, January 22, 2005

Computer Theft Disrupts Court
Stolen hardware disturbs courthouse's network for 10 days.

By Jason Geary
The Ledger

BARTOW -- Authorities are investigating the possible theft and sabotage of computer equipment at the Polk County Courthouse that disrupted the building's computer network for 10 days and caused an estimated $90,000 in damage.

Bartow police, who are investigating the incident along with the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, said they are compiling lists of people who had access to the area where the courthouse's computer network is housed.

Court Administrator Nick Sudzina said the courthouse was beginning to recover Friday from the disturbance to its communication abilities.

Sudzina said investigators are working to identify who stole a vital piece of equipment and made changes that caused electronics to sizzle.

No court records were lost. But, for days, employees had trouble sending and receiving emails and using the Internet.

Judges were not able to preside over first-appearance hearings from the courthouse using a video connection that links them to the Polk County Jail. Instead, they had to travel to the jail to conduct the daily proceedings.

Jannet Lewis, trial court technology officer, said the cause of the problem was related to a highly technical piece of communication hardware that was stolen from a secure area on Jan. 11.

The device, known as a "switch," costs about $8,500 and is about the size of a pizza box, she said.

The switch acts as a converter connecting one type of fiber optic cable from the jail to another type of cable at the courthouse, Lewis said.

Lewis said when court officials discovered the theft, they tried to replace the switch. But someone also had made changes that "fried some circuits," destroying the replacement equipment and damaging the courthouse's "backbone of communication."

"It's being viewed as sabotage, whether intentional or unintentional," Lewis said. "It caused a lot of disruption to the network."

More equipment was shipped overnight and installed.

Now, the switch and other communication equipment is kept behind an unmarked door, which can only be opened with a special key that must be signed for and returned, Lewis said.

Within a month, Sudzina said he plans to install security upgrades, among them a locked door accessible only to those with a proper identification badge.

Ledger reporter Gabrielle Finley contributed to this report. Jason Geary can be reached at 863-5339079.