Brickfire Project Executive Director Cheikh Taylor is seeking the public’s help in identifying the culprits of a string of burglaries at the non-profit organization’s project center on West Side Drive.
Starkville Police Department announced in a press release that the latest break-in occurred in the early morning hours of March 1. Taylor said the Brickfire Project Center has been broken into eight times over the last two and a half to three months, although not every incident was reported to SPD.
Brickfire Project provides childcare, after school programs, jobs and skill training, primarily serving low-income residents. Taylor said burglars have stolen tablets children use for homework, petty cash and tools, among other things.
“The Starkville Police Department has been doing whatever they can to help,” Taylor said. “We need people from the community with any information to step up and let us know what’s going on.”
SPD released video of a Feb. 16 break-in that shows what appears to be a male carrying a weapon and going through a desk in the Brickfire Project Center.
The break-ins have been occurring at night, although Taylor said the problem has some employees and volunteers on edge during the day. Brickfire serves approximately 42 children on a daily basis. The non-profit has been active in the community for over 40 years.
As the burglars rummage through the premises, they often destroy some of the smaller but necessary supplies for providing a quality child care environment, according to Taylor. He said any donations of paper supplies, construction paper and crayons would be appreciated.
Taylor added that it is possible the criminals are breaking into other buildings or homes, and then coming back to the Brickfire Project Center as part of a pattern.
“If somebody wants to donate surveillance equipment, that would help us a lot,” Taylor said. “They may stop more crime than they realize.”
Anyone with information about the burglaries is asked to call the Starkville Police Department at 662-323-4131 or Golden Triangle Crime Stoppers at 1-800-530-7151.