By Dennis Oda, Star-Bulletin
Campbell High School security guard Dawn Akiona
peeks through the hole drilled in the door of the computer
room, where 24 iMac computers were stolen during the
weekend. In total, 31 computers valued at nearly $50,000
were stolen during three recent weekends.

Thieves hit
Campbell High
3 times, grab
31 new computers

The iMacs were taken
during three weekends,
for a loss of nearly $50,000

By Rod Ohira
Star-Bulletin

Thirty-one new computers valued at nearly $50,000 were stolen from Campbell High School during three weekends from November through New Year's.

It's an unconscionable crime, said Campbell Vice Principal Robert Elliott, because of its effect on students.

"What they stole from our students is opportunity, and opportunity can't be replaced," he said.

"There's a total loss of educational opportunity," Elliott added. "How do our seniors make up a computer project they were working on that may affect their college opportunities?"

By Dennis Oda, Star-Bulletin
A Campbell High School security guard, Rolanda Torres,
picks up a surge suppressor, one of the few things left in
the computer room last weekend when 25 computers were stolen.

The stolen iMac computers were insured, but replacing them may take a while, Elliott said.

"We'll be filling in gaps until then," he added.

The first burglary occurred over the Veterans Day weekend in November, police said. An unpacked iMac was taken from a business classroom in "G" Building.

Six more iMacs were stolen from another business classroom in the same building during the weekend of Dec. 10-12.

The thieves used a sledgehammer to break through the wall, Elliott said of the second burglary.

They struck again during the New Year's weekend, stealing 24 iMac computers from a third-floor room in "D" Building.

"They cut through a chain-link fence and cut the lock on a metal gate," Elliott said.

It appears the thieves first attempted to break the knob off a door to gain entrance into the classroom, he added.

"They used a carpenter's drill to break through the door," Elliott said. "There were four cuts. They then reached through and defeated the dead bolt."

Elliott said the 24 computers stolen last weekend have a "tangerine" or orange-colored plastic outer shell. The seven other stolen iMacs have a bluish-green shell.

Anyone with information about the stolen computers can call CrimeStoppers at 955-8300.