Information sought about shelter break-in

MAT-SU -- Mat-Su Borough Animal Care and Regulation staff are looking for leads in a break-in that happened over the weekend at the shelter.

According to information from Chief Animal Care officer Dave Allison, someone apparently got through the two fences barring access to the shelter while it was closed Sunday night and broke into a storage area in a barn on the shelter property, and into two ACR vehicles. Allison didn't have a damage estimate, but said one window of an ACR truck was broken out and a lock was smashed on the storage room in the barn. No animals were in the barn at the time, and no damage was done to the ACR van that was also broken into.

Both vehicles and the storage area were rifled through, Allison said, but it doesn't appear anything was stolen.

"Nothing is missing that we're aware of," Allison said.

He said he suspects the break-in may have been an attempt to find drugs that could be used in treating sick or injured animals. In the Lower 48, Allison said, such break-ins at animal treatment facilities are common.

"[They may] think we keep things like that in our vehicles -- but we don't," Allison said.

Allison said the gates were closed, but there are areas around the gates where someone could squeeze through or under, to gain access to the area. He said he's considered options to increase security around the shelter, but it's a balance between added security and extra costs.

"Would I like to have more, better security, yes, but it quickly becomes an expense, and there may not be justification for it," Allison said. "There are a lot of things people think you could do -- lighting is an issue, for example. But the truck was parked right under a light. The problem is, we're remote. Nobody's around at night. Things are going to happen and that's a problem, but we're always looking at making it more secure."

People with information about the break-in are asked to contact the Alaska State Troopers at 745-2131 or to contact the shelter at 746-5500.