Thieves stole more than $16,000 worth of computer equipment, ranging from monitors to modems, from the Kiewit Computation Center in early March, according to the Hanover Police Department.
Hanover Police Sergeant Frank Moran said the break-in was discovered by a janitor on Monday, March 13. The stolen equipment included two Apple Computer monitors, a Power Macintosh 7100, a modem, a hard disk, an answering machine and various computer disks and cable.
He said the thieves broke into Kiewit Offices 106 and 108 by manipulating the door locks. But he added the break-in was not necessarily a forced entry.
Moran said the perpetrators are unknown at this time but Hanover Police is actively investigating possible leads.
"The Kiewit break-in is still being investigated, and we are not sure where the investigations will take us," he said.
"We are in the process of conducting interviews and working with big computer equipment to see where it could go to," he said. "We have taken fingerprints and are canvassing the area for leads and information."
He said Hanover Police has contacted anyone with offices facing Kiewit to inquire if they saw anything suspicious that weekend. Moran believes that because of the magnitude of equipment stolen, the thieves must have made several trips.
The theft is the second at Kiewit in two months. In February, thieves stole computer hardware worth $8,200. Then, the perpetrators removed the window in the door to room nine of Kiewit, reached through the hole and opened the door from the inside, Moran previously told The Dartmouth.
Director of Computing Services Malcolm Brown said Kiewit has stepped up its security systems and strengthened the locks on the doors in order to prevent a recurrence of the break-ins.
Moran said he does not think the thieves pose a threat to Dartmouth students and their personal computer equipment.
"They targeted offices rather than dormitories because of thelarge amount of equipment concentrated there," he said.
"They are not a serious threat to students, but students should still lock their doors and call the police or Safety and Security if they see anything suspicious," Moran added.
