Bartlett Center suffers vandalism, robbery Monday night

By Jenna Wilson

St. Joseph’s Bartlett Center planned to bear Tuesday’s cold weather and remain open to the public, but an overnight robbery forced the center to close for the day as staff members dealt with the aftermath.

Employees walked in Tuesday morning to find a window had been broken, and the youth facility was ransacked and robbed.

“I got a text from my employees around 6 a.m. saying the building has been broken into and it’s bad,” said LaTonya Williams, executive director of the Bartlett Center. “So, I hurried up and came in, and it was trashed. Cribs all over the place, blankets, it looked pretty bad.”

The suspect has been caught on video footage and staff is currently working with law enforcement to have him identified.

Williams said it was likely a homeless person because, although the man walked away with a few electronic items such as iPads and laptops, the majority of items taken included food from the freezer, stored breast milk, diapers, blankets, a few first-aid kits and hygiene products.

“It was just very unusual items,” she said. “As I looked back at the camera footage, I noticed he was in the building for three hours, ate some food and went to the bathroom, even took some extra coats. In my mind, if I were homeless, those are all things I would need. It’s been very cold this week, so I can understand, but it’s still very scary.”

School closings and cancellations over the last few days have created difficulties for parents who have still been expected to work, and the recent robbery has only led to more frustration as the facility had to remain closed for another day.

“I can tell you that I was wanting to open still,” Williams said. “My staff was like, ‘LaTonya, there’s no way we can open. The rooms are trashed, there’s no food or blankets,’ and I was literally in tears because it’s overwhelming. I felt like I let the parents down today.”

Williams said every local agency has a goal to help those in need, and they urge anyone looking for resources to reach out instead of burglarizing organizations.

“He didn’t have weapons on him or anything like that, and looking at the items he took and left with, he didn’t mean any harm even though it did harm us,” she said. “If anyone is in need, all they have to do is just to come and ask. If I’m able to provide anything, I will or I’ll offer a contact or resource.”

The Bartlett Center has plans to operate with normal business hours Wednesday morning.