The $500 in musical equipment stolen from the Z-Force Action Band following their performance earlier this month at Psi Upsilon fraternity was recovered by band member Jennifer McCullough '97 early last Wednesday morning after she received an anonymous phone call instructing her to check her driveway.
McCullough, who lives off campus at 3 West Street in Hanover, said the anonymous caller spoke to her roommate at 12:30 a.m. on Wednesday morning May 7, but wanted to speak to McCullough, who was sleeping at the time.
The caller hung up but then called back two minutes later, and told McCullough -- who was awakened by the second call -- to go to the end of her driveway and she would "find the stolen microphones."
McCullough said she and her roommate went outside with a flashlight and found all of the stolen equipment in a bag in the driveway.
Jacob Wegmann '97, another member of Z-Force, said he did not understand why the thief would have chosen to return the equipment to McCullough.
The band finished their performance at 3 a.m. on Saturday morning May 2 and left their equipment at Psi U overnight. When they returned at 3:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon, the six microphones they had rented from Hanover Strings were missing.
Wegmann believes the theft occurred between 10 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon.
Hanover Police Sergeant Lawrence Ranslow responded to the call after Z-Force member Jonah Blumstein '98 alerted the police. Ranslow detected no signs of a break-in but said that the thief was most likely "someone just passing through."
Psi U President Adrian Durbin '98 told The Dartmouth after the theft that "there could have been stretches of time where the microphones were unattended ... It would have taken only a couple of minutes to get them."
According to Durbin, "two suspicious men" were seen looking at the equipment at around 4 a.m. the morning of the theft, but said the men left when asked to and the equipment was still there when they left.
Wegmann said that although the band is relieved to have recovered its equipment, they are still curious as to the identity of the thief.
No new leads are being followed.
