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News

The Omega pillaged

Glynn Brothen - News Editor

The Omega newspaper suffered a major financial blow at the end of May House #2 was burgarlarized. Two iMac computers, an AirPort Extreme wireless router and two Canon EoS Digital Rebel XT 350D cameras were stolen. According to Director of Services Les Tabata, the break in was discovered and reported the morning of Monday, May 31 by construction workers. The theives gained access via the basement door. “The file is still open,” said Tabata. “Unfortunately these things are common, but the file will remain open until we can close it.” Another break in occurred last weekend when the House of Learning construction site was broken into and tagged with graffiti. ‘We discovered it [on Monday June 28] at 7AM’ said Tyler Loehr, site supervisor. It is yet to be determined if the two incidents are related. Although little damage was done to the Omega house, the total cost of stolen property amounts to about $7,000 along with additional costs in terms of lost hours and work.
“It has been a major inconvenience in terms of lost work hours,” said Omega Editor-in-Chief, Sadie Cox. Loss of both computers, filled with important files including resumes, photos and the newspaper’s customized templates has resulted in a large effort to recuperate. Cox, who has only been on the job since May, has been rebuilding the system since. She has taken preventative measures against future theft by having window bars and deadbolts installed. The main focus is to replace the equipment and be prepared for September when the newspaper will be published weekly rather than monthly as it is during the summer. “We’ve replaced both computers and are hoping to buy two used cameras from the journalism department before September to replace the stolen ones,” said Cox. “The loss [of the equipment] will definitely have an impact,” said Shannah McTavish, Omega’s Business manager in regards to the 2010-11 budget. Anyone with knomledge regarding the theft are encouraged to contact The Omega at (250-372-1272), Campus Security (250-828-5033) or the RCMP.