Burglar strikes judges’ offices
An undetermined amount of cash was stolen from the Franklin County Probate Court and Magistrate Court judges’ offices during a break-in this week, Sheriff Stevie Thomas said.
Someone entered the Franklin County Justice Center through a locked back door Wednesday night or Thursday morning and broke into the judges’ offices and locked court vaults using a crowbar tool, Thomas said.
“I think they pried open every (door) that was locked,” he said.
Cash and checks made out to the Franklin County Magistrate’s Office and the Franklin County Probate Court – which handles that county’s traffic cases – were stolen, Thomas said.
The justice center is located on Georgia Highway 145 on the southeast edge of Carnesville.
Thomas doesn’t think any current court employees broke into the building, he said.
“We do not think that anybody employed in there was involved,” he said.
Investigators asked for an audit to determine exactly how much money is missing.
“The auditors are coming to assist in that part, and then we’ll be able to assess how much was taken,” he said.
Court staff generally made a bank deposit Thursday night, which could mean the vaults held more money than on other days – but the auditors likely will take the weekend to assess that, Thomas said.
Authorities were not alerted to the theft because the Franklin County Justice Center does not have an alarm system, he said. The county will install an alarm system in the future, he added.
More than one person could be involved in the theft, Thomas said.
“It could have been more (than one person), but I’m not making that determination now,” he said.
Sheriff’s deputies and agents with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation are not releasing any information about the possible amount taken from the judges’ offices or what else might be missing, said Jim Fullington, special agent in charge of the GBI’s Athens office.
Originally published in the Athens Banner-Herald on Saturday, December 04, 2010
