Police in Ohio say almost 300 books were stolen from the library of University of Dayton Law School in a series of thefts going back to March. The total value? More than $54,000, which is about the same as the estimated cost of attending the school for one year.
Authorities believe three suspects are responsible for the heists, and identified one of them as 29-year-old Christopher Begley of Columbus. Police told the Dayton Daily News that they spotted Begley in surveillance images, and believe he was involved in all of the thefts, including one on June 30, where they say two men stole 99 books, valued at $20,900.
Police said four suspects are believed to be behind another theft on June 12, where 106 books were swiped. Investigators are trying to confirm the identities of the other suspects, believed to be a woman and two men.
So far, officers have managed to track and recover some of the texts, which they say Begley had sold to a Half Price Books store in Fairborn, Ohio, which is about a 20 minute drive from Dayton.
[Image from Dayton Police via WHIO screengrab]
