An "undetermined amount of cash" was stolen from the Hanover Town Clerk's office in a burglary during the late hours of Thursday night or early Friday morning, according to Hanover Police Chief Nicholas Giaccone. Officials at the Town Clerk's office said that several drawers were opened and the door to their "vault" that contained "all of the town's vital records" had been tampered with, he said.
It is too early to determine the amount of money that was stolen, Giaccone said in an interview with The Dartmouth.
Town officials are currently conducting an "inventory and audit" to determine if any further items are missing, according to Giaccone. Town Hall was closed Friday morning while police officers conducted their investigation, but has reopened for the afternoon.
Giaccone explained that the vault is simply a closet containing the town's records.
"For lack of a better term, it's known as a vault, but it's not the traditional metal doors with a spin dial combination," he said.
Giaccone described the robbery as "highly unusual," and added that the Hanover Police and officials at Town Hall would implement "extra security" to prevent similar crimes in the future.
"I can't remember if, or ever, that the Town hall had been broken into like this," he said.
Hanover Police responded to the call at 7:30 a.m. Friday morning. Town Hall was closed Friday morning while police officers investigated, but opened for the afternoon, Giaccone said.
Hanover Police is examining tapes from video surveillance cameras at the Town Hall for any information that will help investigate the burglary. Giaccone said he could not determine how long the investigation will take.
"These things, they could take forever," he said.
Giaccone said he encourages Hanover residents to cooperate with the investigation.
"We're asking people who may have been in the area [on Thursday night] to report anything, even if it does not seem out of the ordinary," he said.
Giaccone added that the Norwich Police Department responded to a call at 11 a.m. Friday morning from a woman who had a "suspicious encounter" with an unknown male as she walked along Route 5, north of the town of Norwich.
A man in a dark-colored pickup truck with Vermont license plates that begin with BLK pulled over on the side of the road near where the woman was walking, Giaccone said. The man exited the truck and approached the woman with a large stick approximately two inches in diameter and ordered the woman to enter the truck.
After the woman refused to enter the vehicle, the man re-entered the truck and drove away, Giaccone said.
"This is not a domestic situation," he said. "This is a situation where the woman did not know who this person is."
Giaccone said that the women in the area should be cautious because of this incident. He added that people should avoid taking "unnecessary risks" by walking or jogging alone at night.
This article will be updated as more information becomes available.
