Cross-posted by Dave Fisher, with the permission of Nancy Beale.

          ************MESSAGE BEING CROSS-P0STED**************

Date:         Fri, 30 Jul 1993 11:13:00 -0800
Sender:       Library Administration and Management <LIBADMIN@UMAB.BITNET>
From:         Nancy_Beale%UCSDLIBRARY.UCSD.EDU@SDSC.BITNET
Subject:      SECURITY ALERT

Security Alert

>From the "I thought I had heard it all before" files.

Last week, Access Services staff apprehended a suspect, for the
attempted theft of 34 Time magazine covers from the University
Library, University of California, San Diego campus.  Staff were
alerted when the suspect set off the 3M gate alarm as he attempted
to leave the library. The suspect: Carl Alexander, 31, was later
arrested for burglary and transferred to the San Diego jail. While
waiting for the police to arrive, the suspect admitted that he had
cut the covers out of the magazines. He later claimed that this
work was "what he did for a living".  A folder he was carrying
contained a letter he allegedly had received from his "employer"
ordering the specific magazine covers and mentioning an enclosed
$500 for previous "services".  The suspect later admitted to police
that his employer sends him to specific university and public
libraries, where he finds magazine covers containing celebrity
photos. Once in the hands of his employer, the covers are sent to
the celebrity appearing on the cover, along with a letter
requesting an autograph. The autographed cover is then mounted and
sold as a collector's item.

The suspect later indicated that his "employer" was from the
Washington state area, but this has not been verified.  It seems
likely that this person has others working for him in other cities.
If you have information about similar incidents or questions about
this one, please give me a call at 619-534-1271. Thank you.
Nancy Beale
Access Services, Asst. Dept Head
University Library
Univ of California, San Diego
La Jolla, California
bealen@ucsd.edu