An East St. Louis school board member says the cash-strapped system lost more than $1 million over a year’s time to burglars despite safeguards that include paying $1.2 million a year for private security.
EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill. (AP) — An East St. Louis school board member says the cash-strapped system lost more than $1 million over a year’s time to burglars despite safeguards that include paying $1.2 million a year for private security. The Belleville-News Democrat’s review of the district’s crime reports found that the thefts dating to July 2009 were even done while the system had access to state-of-the-art surveillance and alarm systems. The losses include actual rip-offs of computers and other equipment, as well as damage the burglars caused. In some cases, the newspaper says, the thieves had an easy time because some school doors were left unlocked at night and burglar alarms weren’t properly set. Copyright 2010 The Associated Press.