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Computer thefts raise suspicions

Burglars swipe laptops owned by a developer and a Town Council hopeful's wife.

By ELENA LESLEY
Published September 16, 2006

YANKEETOWN - A staff member arrived at the Izaak Walton Lodge on Thursday to find the back door pulled from its hinges and a laptop storing development plans stolen.

A little down the road, Penny Phares started her morning at Isaiah's Place, her nonprofit foundation. When she went to check her schedule, she saw that someone had stolen a donated laptop and forced open the back door with a crowbar.

Those affected by the latest events in the long-running saga of Yankeetown suspect there may be more than just petty crime to blame.

"I would speculate that it was most likely someone who wanted to see what they thought was confidential information," said John Fleming, a spokesman for Izaak Walton Investors LLC, of the break-in at the lodge. "There were other things of value that weren't taken."

Phares said she had no idea who could have stolen a $1,200 donated IBM Thinkpad or $250 digital camera from Isaiah's Place.

But she noted that it was strange the two buildings were "broken into the same day, the same night."

The Levy County Sheriff's Office is investigating both break-ins.

Phares worried that the burglary might be related to her husband's recent run for Town Council.

Ray Phares, who supported negotiating with Izaak Walton Investors over a proposed resort hotel on the Withlacoochee River, was not elected to the council.

Three candidates opposing zoning changes for the development were voted into office in the special election.

Fleming said goods stolen from Izaak Walton are most likely another manifestation of hostility toward the development.

He said residents had previously ransacked packages Izaak Walton Investors had turned into town hall, removing some documents.

"An unruly mob is trying to chase us out by hook or by crook," he said.

But they won't find much on the laptop, he added. Just various portions of the development plans, correspondence and the project timeline.

All the files are backed up elsewhere.

Phares said the information stored on her computer was even more mundane: appointments for clients, PowerPoint presentations on infant mental health.

These items will be harder to replace. She had stored the files on a memory stick, but it was plugged into the stolen laptop.

And she doesn't see how the foundation can replace the equipment, considering the organization can't afford to pay for it out of pocket.

Phares blames herself for not taking the laptop home, but said she never expected this sort of crime.

"I thought this was a safe place," she said.

Elena Lesley can be reached at elesley@sptimes.com or 564-3627.

[Last modified September 16, 2006, 07:06:10]