Philadelphia Library Theft: Forget the CDs, We're Takin' the Computers

The scene of the crime

Link to January 28 philly.com report, "Thieves break through walls to steal from Philadelphia public library, make off with 6 PCs".

Excerpt: Thieves smashed through two walls and a bookcase filled with biographies early Tuesday to steal six computers from a North Philadelphia branch of the Free Library.

A staffer arrived early at the Cecil B. Moore Branch at 23rd Street and Ridge Avenue and first noticed the machines were missing and wondered if the Library's technical staff had taken them to be serviced.

"Then she noticed everything else, the wall, the books on the floor. It was a mess," said Aurora Deshauteurs, branch manager of the children's library.

An abandoned community center next door provided cover for the thieves. Using heavy tools, they burrowed through the community center's wall and then bashed through another to gain access to the library.