Photos taken at Tech Soft 3D around the time a burglary on Jan. 20. Photo: Tech Soft
Photos taken at Tech Soft 3D around the time of a burglary on Jan. 20. Photo: Tech Soft

Berkeley police are investigating the theft of four laptop computers on Monday from Tech Soft 3D at 931 Ashby Ave. near Seventh Street.

Police responded within 10 minutes to an alarm that went off around 6:47 a.m. on Jan. 20, but did not see any signs of forced entry, according to Officer Jennifer Coats, spokeswoman for the department. Around 10:17 a.m. an employee of the company called to say four computers were missing, said Coats.

Footage from Tech Soft’s security camera revealed these photos of an unidentified man in the company’s offices around the time the burglar alarm went off, according to Eric Smith, a senior network administrator. The company has shown them to the police, said Coats. (It looks like the time stamp for the camera was not readjusted to reflect the shift from Daylight Savings to Standard time.)

“The guy was in and out within three minutes and in the process was able to snag four computers, all laptops,” said Smith. “It seems clear to me he has done this before.  He covered his face as much as he could and he had a very large messenger bag.”

Tech Soft sent the images to Berkeleyside in hopes someone in the community would recognize the man.

Photo: Tech Soft 3D
Photo: Tech Soft 3D

If anyone has any information, they can call the police department’s Property Crimes Detail at 510-981-5737, or the department’s non-emergency number at 510-981-5900. If a caller wishes to remain anonymous they can contact Bay Area Crime Stoppers at 800-222-8477.

Tech Soft 3D helps develop software applications for business.

Close up of man captured by Tech Soft camera. Photo: Tech Soft
Close up of man captured by Tech Soft camera. Photo: Tech Soft

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Frances Dinkelspiel, Berkeleyside and CItyside co-founder, is a journalist and author. Her first book, Towers of Gold: How One Jewish Immigrant Named Isaias Hellman...