NEW SHARON – Two break-ins at town offices in Fayette and New Sharon overnight Tuesday netted thieves more than $410, a safe, town records and a tape recorder. Both towns’ officials are considering measures to make the buildings more secure.
Maine State Police are investigating the burglaries that were reported Wednesday after employees discovered forced entries into both buildings.
New Sharon Town Clerk Rose Mary Eller discovered the break-in and the safe missing when she came into the town office to get some work done prior to opening at 2 p.m. Wednesday, selectmen’s Chairman Jim Smith said Thursday.
“She was quite upset about the whole thing,” he said.
The door casing to the office on Main Street was damaged to gain entry, he said.
State police came Wednesday, he said, dusting for fingerprints and gathering evidence.
It looked as if a vehicle had been backed up to the door to remove the safe, Smith said. The safe wasn’t a big safe, he said, but it was heavy and he believed two people removed it.
“We didn’t have much in the safe, maybe $400,” as well as a few papers, he said. “I guess we’re going to have to take some security measures, and we’ll have to get another safe.”
Smith said the Planning Board had met Tuesday night and left the office at 9:30 p.m. The break-in occurred between that time and when Eller discovered it, he said.
Maine State Police Trooper Scott Dalton confirmed Thursday he was investigating the break-in at the New Sharon Town Office. But because of a bad cell phone connection, communication with the Sun Journal was lost, and no other information was available at 5 p.m. Thursday.
In Fayette, Town Manager Mark Robinson said that whoever broke into the town office also got into the place where the cash box was kept.
The town office staff only keeps coins on hand and more than $10 in change was taken, he said.
The town office suffered minor damage, but there was forced entry into the building and into the place where the cash box was kept.
The thieves also broke into desks and accessed files. A digital recorder Robinson used to record selectmen’s meetings that he kept in his locked desk drawer was taken and some keys that were also locked in a desk were removed.
It’s the second time in three years that the Fayette Town Office on Route 17 has been broken into.
Robinson said he’s going to discuss with selectmen getting an electronic alarm and surveillance system for the office to deter people from breaking in and to alert officials quickly if someone does break in.
“I think people have the impression that a lot of money is hanging around town offices and it’s not,” Robinson said. He added that the potential five- to 10-year penalty indicates how desperate people are looking for money in the wrong places, Robinson said.
Maine State Police Trooper William Plourde who is handling the Fayette investigation was unavailable for comment on the case Thursday.
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