Officials evaluating school security following bold thefts Friday

Above, surveillance camera photo of the woman police think walked into Corbin Elementary School last Friday and stole money and credit cards from two teachers.

Corbin police are investigating a bold theft at one of the city’s elementary schools, and school officials are in the process of rethinking security procedures district wide in the wake of the incident.

According to Corbin Police Detective Bill Rose, a black female simply walked through the office area of Corbin Elementary School last Friday sometime between 11:30 a.m. and noon and into the main part of the building. She went directly to two empty classrooms, removed credit cards, cash and other personal items from the purses of two teachers, and then left.

"She went through that office just like she’d been there a million times. She was real comfortable. She knew what she was doing," Rose said.

Rose said the receptionist at the school was making photocopies at the time and did not notice the woman walk through the area. Normal visitors must sign in and go through a set of locked security doors.

The classrooms she targeted were empty at the time because the students were on recess.

"She was very slick," said Corbin Schools Assistant Superintendent Darrell Tremaine. "It was pretty well planned. She knew exactly which rooms she was going in. She knew those kids were out on recess … She never even looked in any of the other rooms she went by."

One of the teachers targeted by the theft realized what had happened when she got a call from a bank telling her that her credit card was being used.

Rose said the alleged thief was able to buy items at Sears, Walmart and Walgreens. Among the purchases was an "expensive" television.

The buying spree was stopped when clerks at one store asked for a pin number for the card and the woman could not provide it.

Surveillance cameras at the school did not capture any good images of the woman, but Walgreens security cameras did. Police are hoping someone will see the images and recognize her and report the information to authorities.

In the meantime, Tremaine said school officials are deeply concerned about the ease with which a stranger was able to simply walk into the school. He said plans are in the works to install a walk-up window at the school that visitors will go to instead of allowing access to the office. The office door will be magnetically locked. The changes may take some time because any locked doors must be installed to automatically open when the school’s fire alarm system goes off.

Officials are also looking at ways to secure Corbin Middle School, Tremaine said, noting it is the most unsecured of the district’s schools.

In the meantime, front office staff will be more vigilant until the end of the school year.

"We have learned a good lesson that if you are on the desk you should never leave that desk and turn your back," Tremaine said. "Sadly, this is a reminder that we need to always be on guard."

Rose said the suspect in the thefts was a passenger in a newer model white Dodge Charger. If captured, she will likely face charges of burglary, theft, fraudulent use of a credit care and theft of identity.

Anyone with information regarding the crime or the woman’s identity is encouraged to call Corbin Police at 606-528-1122.