Thieves drill through concrete to access up to $100,000 in computers

KAMLOOPS, B.C. – Police are investigating a heist at a computer store in Kamloops, B.C., that could have been scripted straight from a Hollywood movie.

Staff at the Simply Computing store in the Sahali Centre Mall arrived Saturday to find a pile of debris in a back storage room.

Store manager Regan Hayes said no alarm was sounded because the thieves broke in through the mall’s concrete ceiling.

About 50 iPads and 38 computers were stolen. The value of the items is estimated to be between $50,000 and $100,000.

Hayes said it appears the crooks climbed onto the mall’s roof sometime overnight, where they were able to get into an empty second-storey office through a window.

Once inside they drilled through the concrete floor and then into the drywall of Simply Computing’s ceiling.

“It’s ‘Ocean’s 11’ stuff,” Hayes said, referring to the movie starring George Clooney, Brad Pitt and Julia Roberts.

“They dropped in through the ceiling and took all of our laptops and all of our iPads.”

Hayes said Apple’s high-tech security and tracking software might come in handy for police when it comes to catching those responsible.

“If someone sells these things, they can work it back and trace it to them,” he said.

Hayes said the thieves did not gain access to the secure room where they keep customers’ computers that are in for repairs.

“Nobody’s personal information was accessed,” he said.

The RCMP investigation into the burglary is ongoing.

(Kamloops This Week)