HUPD Investigates Thefts of 10 Projectors

The Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) is investigating thefts over the last two months of 10 classroom projectors valued at $3,000 to $7,500 each, according to spokesperson Steven G. Catalano.

The liquid crystal display (LCD) projectors allow videos, DVDs and slides to be viewed in high resolution in the classroom.

HUPD officers responded to Paine Hall yesterday morning and William James Hall Monday to take reports of a projector stolen from each building.

The projectors are high-end, ceiling-mounted overhead models which Catalano said have been taken from “locations that vary from graduate schools to the College, from the Graduate School of Education to the Law School to the Medical School campus.”

He added that LCD projectors have been targeted in thefts across the country.

“We are not alone,” he said. “Many colleges and universities nationwide are suffering LCD projector thefts. Some have suffered hundreds of them.”

Catalano said HUPD is concerned because these 10 thefts target a specific item.

“Someone has to be a motivated offender to get these projectors down,” he said. “They are people with something specific in mind...either to keep it for personal use, or to steal it and resell it on the black market.”

Catalano said HUPD sent out a crime alert on Oct. 14 to Information Technology (IT) officials across the campus informing them of three thefts over the weekend of Oct. 4 to Oct. 5 and encouraging them to lock the projectors and look out for suspicious activity in classrooms.

He said investigations are ongoing, and added that HUPD is working to apprehend the suspect but has not determined if one suspect is behind all the thefts.

“We haven’t caught anyone in these thefts,” Catalano said. “We’re not sure if the thefts are connected other than just the fact the LCD projectors are stolen. We’re working with school administrators and IT professionals to prevent other thefts.”

—Staff writer Hana R. Alberts can be reached at alberts@fas.harvard.edu.