VALLEY COLLEGE : Class Canceled After Bow Thefts

Valley College officials have temporarily canceled an archery class in the wake of four break-ins at the campus archery storage shed since the summer.

Archery teacher Karlie Tan said the thieves, who stole 11 bows, left her without enough equipment to teach the class of about 25 students.

An alarm, installed one week earlier, went off at 3:50 a.m. Sept. 30 when thieves cut the latch and pried the front door open, campus police Capt. Karl Traber said.

Within two minutes, Traber said, Officers Richard Rank and Gail Tam responded, but found no one at the scene.

“I’m surprised they could leave that fast,” Traber said. “They must have had a lookout.”

Although police have no suspects, Traber said investigators believe the culprits knew what was in the shed.

In the first two incidents, the thieves stole only competition equipment, Tan said. The last time, they took bows weighing more than six pounds each with an estimated value of $25 for each bow.

The last burglary was “very strange because the equipment is so old. To us, it was very suspicious,” Tan said. “We can’t figure it.”

Tan said the thieves left her with only 30-pound bows, which are difficult for beginning students to use. She said she hopes that bows borrowed from Pierce College can be repaired and classes can begin again soon.