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Sysadmin Steals Almost 20,000 Pieces of Computer Equipment

coondoggie writes "Now this is some serious computer theft. We're talking 19,709 pieces of stolen computer equipment from the US Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, DC. The theft included everything from PCs and printer toner to hard drives, software and other office equipment amounting to over $120,000, according to court documents and published reports."

27 of 258 comments (clear)

  1. WTF by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    Where do I find these $6 computers this guy is stealing?

    1. Re:WTF by NotBornYesterday · · Score: 4, Funny

      They ought to leverage his natural skills and abilities by putting this guy in charge of the disposal and recycling of old stuff. If he was taking old equipment with pre-ROHS circuit boards, he probably saved them >$120k in fees.

      I hope he wiped those hard drives of any critical information. I wonder if he was working with those guys from MI6 who sold the camera?

      --
      I prefer rogues to imbeciles because they sometimes take a rest.
  2. Per item... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    19,709 pieces of stolen computer equipment [...] amounting to over $120,000

    Wow, that's almost $6.09 per stolen item! Truly, this is comparable to a $700,000,000,000 wall street bailout.

  3. The investigation widens... by waldonova · · Score: 5, Funny

    In further news, a source inside the Pentagon reports that 17 pencils have been reported missing over the last three months. "These are critical communication devices, built to mil spec standards. They have the potential to inflict injury to an untrained operator. The Pentagon takes these communications security breaches quite seriously, and we will be looking for further funding to study this National Vulnerability."

    1. Re:The investigation widens... by SimonGhent · · Score: 4, Funny

      They have the potential to inflict injury to an untrained operator

      You've seen The Dark Knight then.

      --
      simon
    2. Re:The investigation widens... by waldonova · · Score: 5, Funny

      No, I've never met the Vice President but I'm sure that he is aware of this situation.

  4. Re:Impressive... most impressive... or not... by JustKidding · · Score: 5, Funny

    Like, a big box of CD-Rs or something. If he had stolen a single CPU, they might as well have claimed that he stole more than 40 million transistors.

  5. Excuse me ... by erlehmann · · Score: 5, Funny

    ... I believe you still have my err, uh, stapler.

    1. Re:Excuse me ... by QuantumG · · Score: 2, Funny

      Mine is the Swingline.

      --
      How we know is more important than what we know.
  6. Office Equipment by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    wants to be free!

  7. Re:Your Rights Online? by jeffmeden · · Score: 5, Funny

    And then what does it still have to do with YRO, unless he stole it over SSH under the guise of "free (as in computer parts) speech"...

  8. Wow! by Eg0Death · · Score: 2, Funny

    And I felt bad when I used a company CD-R!

    --
    Why is this thus? What is the reason for this thusness?
  9. Re:Impressive... most impressive... or not... by WarwickRyan · · Score: 4, Funny

    19,700 sheets of paper....

  10. Re:Impressive... most impressive... or not... by LordKronos · · Score: 5, Funny

    No, it was just a couple PCs. They're just using the RIAA/CD-R theory to say that, since it was a couple really fast computers, it was the equivalent of thousands of 386's.

  11. Re:Impressive... most impressive... or not... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Toner particles bring the average down.

  12. Obviously no toilet seats by Grashnak · · Score: 4, Funny

    Apparently he didn't get any of those $600 toilet seats or $900 hammers that we used to hear about the military procuring.

    --
    Life needs more saving throws.
  13. Re:Impressive... most impressive... or not... by chortick · · Score: 2, Funny

    This reminds me of the old joke... "The Pentagon reports today that a truckload of toilet seats was stolen in transit. The estimated street value is $2 billion..."

  14. They deserve it. Really. Take this as a lesson. by unity100 · · Score: 3, Funny

    ANY military institution that lets goddamn NINETEEN THOUSAND PIECES OF HARDWARE EQUIPMENT to be stolen,

    .... well im speechless .... i cant even find analogies.

  15. Re:$6.08 per item! by sqldr · · Score: 5, Funny

    on a related note, does anyone wanna buy a box of paperclips?

    --
    I wrote my first program at the age of six, and I still can't work out how this website works.
  16. Re:Impressive... most impressive... or not... by mlush · · Score: 5, Funny

    My thoughts exactly. Was this a case of 19,000 pencils and then a few PCs?

    Couldn't be, were talking 'military spec' pencils which cost at least $200 each

  17. Copyright by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    He only stole one computer, took a picture of it and copied it 20,000 times.

    Because in USA, copying is stealing!

  18. Re:Impressive... most impressive... or not... by Shemilt · · Score: 5, Funny

    "... Federal investigators say they have nothing to go on."

  19. Re:Simple solution. Ask by lannocc · · Score: 2, Funny

    It's not every day you hear dumpster-diving being termed 'elegant'.

  20. Re:Impressive... most impressive... or not... by mlush · · Score: 5, Funny

    Best way to sneak small things out of work is to (1) sell it on ebay and then (2) mail it while (3) pocketing the money. (Like that guy on MASH who mailed a jeep piece-by-piece.) Nobody examines packages closely.

    There's the old joke about the guy who takes a wheel barrow of straw out of the yard every day, the security guard knows he's stealing something and searches it every day, but find only straw! Years later they bump into each other and the guard asks now its too late to do anything about it... what were you stealing? and the guy grins and says 'wheelbarrows'.

  21. Re:More likely ex-military spec by BlackSnake112 · · Score: 2, Funny

    from TFA: private information from 14 employees and contractors who worked at the laboratory from 1998 to 2002 had been found on CDs or zip drives (emphasis mine)

    Cutting edge military hardware.

    Well those zip drives did have the click of death....

  22. Re:More likely ex-military spec by norpan · · Score: 5, Funny

    There are 1 kinds of people in this world, those who start indexing with 0, and thouse who don't?

    --
    Opinions expressed above are mine, and not my employees'.
  23. "Red October" scenario by ZackZero · · Score: 2, Funny

    Watch out; the Russians are going to somehow get their hands on a hard drive containing data on submarine magnetohydrodynamic propulsion, adapt it to a (slightly) larger Typhoon-class sub, and confuse the hell out of Naval sonar techs with singing.