Spate of speaker thefts from schools
Police are investigating a spate of speaker thefts from schools across Christchurch.
St Albans School acting principal Claire Howison said thieves had taken about 20 speakers from the school in the last month.
She said the school was targeted last summer, but the thefts stopped in the colder months. ‘‘It’s started up again.’’
Thieves stole three speakers from the school’s new PA system early on Friday October 6.
‘‘[A speaker is] worth $80, and it costs another $80 to have it installed again.’’
Because each theft is an individual incident, the value of each one is too low for the school to claim insurance.
‘‘It costs the school and money that should be spent on the children has to be spent on replacing stolen property.’’
Howison said nine speakers were stolen one Saturday morning in September, and she heard from other schools that about 60 speakers were stolen across the city in the same weekend.
She suspected people were using the speakers to play music on bikes.
‘‘I don’t know if that’s the only market for them.’’
Security cameras caught clear footage of the thieves, including their faces, which Howison posted on the school’s Facebook page.
She said in one day 148,000 people had viewed the post and 1700 had shared it.
Police acting youth service manager Sergeant Julie Fifield said police were investigating several school speaker thefts in Christchurch.
‘‘We are analysing CCTV footage from the various schools targeted and this has given us strong lines of inquiry.’’
She recommended schools put identifiable markings on all school equipment.
‘‘Police encourage schools to report any suspicious behaviour, particularly during the school holiday periods,’’ Fifield said.
‘‘It is also important that schools report any theft or damage within their school environment.’’