The day was Saturday, the weather stormy and the time 1:30 a.m. The place was a vacant office space above a nationally known retail jewelry store in a large eastern city. The office space had been rented for two weeks by burglars. The only noise, other than the wind-driven rain pelting the windows, was a saw cutting through the floor – the ceiling of the jewelry store below. The windows had been covered so the activities of the men in the room would not be detected by a passing police patrol.
Two hours earlier, one of these men climbed a telephone pole two blocks away to cut a wire, effectively disabling the store’s alarm system. He had little trouble finding the correct line because the phone company had marked it with a tag. The burglars observed the police and alarm company guard respond, check the premises and find no sign of forced entry.
Manager takes no action
The police