Student held for theft

2004-05-16 08:10

Pietermaritzburg - A student at the School of Electrical, Electronic and Computer Engineering at the Durban campus of the University of KwaZulu-Natal has recently been charged with over 130 counts of theft.

The student, who is thought to be completing his Masters in electrical engineering, was allegedly caught on surveillance cameras after the thefts of photocopiers and computers from the department.

Campus Risk Management Services were informed that two photo-copiers disappeared from the department during the Easter weekend, while two computers were "lost" from a postgraduate computer room in February.

After identifying the student allegedly responsible through information collected from electronic door access-control units and covert and overt surveillance cameras, his residence room was staked out and then searched when he arrived back there.

The room was allegedly full of boxes that contained various computers and computer accessories including modems, hard drives, mother-boards, testing equipment and electrical and electronic accessories. Most of the boxes were sealed.

Many items were found dismantled and there was evidence of the removal of university asset tag numbers. A box containing parts of the missing photocopy machine was found, the remainder of which was discovered in a black plastic bag underneath the student's desk in his office.

All the items recovered were verified as university assets. The approximate value of the recovered items is about R100 000.

More equipment was found later in another room in the residence. It was discovered that many boxes had been sent by the student to Zimbabwe via Johannesburg, presumably for resale.

He was handed over to the police and charged with theft.

The public is urged not to buy any suspicious electronic equipment, especially with university tags, but rather to inform the police immediately.

- The Witness