Authorities investigate theft of dozens of laptops from nursing school

Hundreds of nursing students returning to Solano Community College next Wednesday after a semester break are in for an unpleasant surprise after 47 Dell laptops were stolen from the school.  

College spokesman Peter Bostic told KTVU the laptops help nursing students simulate real life situations with patients. The theft has a far reaching impact.

"It affects the nonprofits that nurses go out and help and do community service with," said Bostic. "The stretch of the hurt reaches throughout the whole county."
    
The theft occurred sometime over the winter break. Campus Chief of Police Steve Dawson, showed KTVU the locked storage room where the laptops were kept.
 
He told KTVU the computers were being recharged and  locked in two heavy metal carts. The thieves stole those too.

"There were no signs of forced entry, so we can assume that somebody had a key or found a door unlocked and was willing to hide inside  and wait until everybody left, " said Dawson.
 
Police said the stolen items were bulky, so it appears that  more than one person was involved. The laptop and carts were likely taken away in a pickup truck.

School officials  offered a message for the thieves.

"One day when one of your siblings or yourself is in a hospital and needs some good nursing care" said Bostic. "Think about what you impacted when you kept an educational tool away from them."  
 
Chief Dawson estimated the loss to be about $64,000 equal to the salary of one campus police officer.
 
 A position that was cut this year due to budget deficits.