2008 Woodie Awards
Stolen art leaves authorities silent
Ariel Messman-Rucker
Issue date: 4/18/08 Section: News
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A violent break-in of the DVC art gallery and theft of two artists' work in February was kept a closely guarded secret for two months by police, faculty and managers.
Gallery director Arthur Scott King, as well as many art department teachers and staff, still will not speak on record about the incident. And Lt. Tom Sharp, of district police services, refuses to reveal even basic information, saying it is "an open investigation."
The break-in occurred over the Feb. 9-10 weekend of a month-long group show, "Places Between," scheduled to end Feb. 15. The gallery was closed at the time.
An unknown number of thieves gained entry by drilling through the lock after apparently being unsuccessful in their efforts to bash down the door.
They stole two pieces of artwork by Liz Hickok and one by Desiree Holman, along with two computers, one of which was being used to show a piece of video artwork.
King and art department chair Michele Krup discovered the break-in on Monday, Feb. 11. Later that day, King sent an e-mail to all DVC employees, saying the gallery show, "Places Between," had been closed early, "due to circumstances beyond our control."
Krup recently agreed to share details of the break-in after being contacted by an Inquirer reporter.
"The doors were shut, and the lock was drilled out with a drill," Krup said, describing the damages she witnessed when first approaching the gallery. "The edges of the door were damaged by a hatchet or some other tool, and there were drill holes in the door."
Building maintenance worker Paul Smith said he was called in to secure the area shortly after the break-in was discovered. He said there was a 6-inch split in the door, as though someone had tried to pry it open.
"When that didn't gain them entry," he said, "they drilled through the lock with a 3/16 drill bit."
The doors were then boarded up with plywood for a week before a new door was put in to replace the one that sustained the most damage; the left-hand door was not replaced.
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