Librarians Go Online To Catch a Suspected Book Thief
By Bob Warburton Feb 18, 2011A suspected library book thief with a taste for expensive reference works and a very active eBay account is scheduled to appear in court next week thanks to the nimble Internet detective work of some Long Island, NY, librarians.
Staff members at the East Meadow Public Library know the alleged crook visited their library twice last summer: Once he made off with three out-of-print reference books worth about $1300; the second time he was barely thwarted in his bid for a volume worth almost $1000.
By tracking the suspect through an eBay account, the librarians were able not only to discover their own missing works but also unearth a startling history.
"He was cleaning out and cleaning up," said Loretta Kelleher, an East Meadow librarian since 1963. "This man had been operating for 11 years. The people buying these books were very pleased and gave him such a good rating. They didn't have a clue because he had this cover story."
He described most merchandise on eBay as discarded library material, Kelleher said.
11 years and 2200 book sales
Based on buyer feedback, Kelleher estimates more than 2200 book sales on the eBay account over its 11 years. If every book were as expensive as those targeted in East Meadow, the profit would have been substantial.
The important thing, as far as East Meadow librarians are concerned, is that a suspect has been arrested. Rudolph Cecera Jr., 41, of New Rochelle, NY, is due in court again on February 25. He is charged with fourth-degree grand larceny, along with three related misdemeanors. He has pled not guilty and has no prior convictions.
Kelleher's suspicions seemed confirmed after talking to one of the arresting officers.
"[Cecera] told the detectives in the car, number one, he had been doing this for 11 years. And, number two, that libraries are an easy mark," she said.
Following the trail
On August 25, Kelleher first noticed that the three reference works-Walter Breen's Complete Encyclopedia of U.S. and Colonial Coins, Architectural Graphic Standards, 10th ed., and Esquire's Encyclopedia of 20th Century Men's Fashions -were missing.
As per library policy, an identification card had been left at the desk while the books were in use. But it was not a photo ID and the name and address turned out to be bogus.
Rocco Cassano, the library's assistant director, reviewed surveillance video. He found the likely culprit, but a baseball cap obscured the man's face. Nassau County police were called, a theft report filed, and then the case file went cold.
But Kelleher, working with fellow librarians Donna Ballard and Christina Crocker, went to eBay and quickly found an account that had previously auctioned off these same three titles. Despite the seller's anonymity and brief transaction history, the librarians were dogged and knew various back-channels to unearth more data.
Kelleher watched the eBay account, waiting to see if the missing books were sold. From March 20 to August 27, she tracked the 101 book sales (including six copies of Architectural Graphic Standards). "Eventually, our three titles were sold," she said.
Going to the well once too often
On September 20, Kelleher overheard a man ask to borrow four "Jane's" reference books. Jane's is a leading publisher of books cataloging military defense items.
Alarm bells went off in Kelleher's head; she had seen many Jane's books sold on the suspicious eBay site. And the visitor fit the physical description of their August 25 thief. Kelleher paged Cassano, and they hatched a plan. She would invent an excuse to give the borrower only one of the four books. The assistant director would duck outside, ready to cut off an attempted getaway.
Cassano wasn't the only one waiting for the man. A taxi idled outside the library entrance, ready to transport his fare. When the suspect emerged, Cassano confronted him; ultimately the suspect handed the book-Jane's All the World's Aircraft, the 2010-11 edition-to Cassano and fled on foot. The thief had indeed targeted a lucrative prize: Amazon.com's list price for this heavy (about seven pounds) hardcover volume new is $995.
The thief remained free, but a second theft was averted. Days later, Kelleher's Internet search paid off. An email address had surfaced for the seller. That led to a personal website with photos of the same man spotted at the library.
Police now had a name connected to the eBay seller and online data linking him to East Meadow's stolen books. They also convinced eBay administrators to provide a name. The case was gelling nicely.
"It was not until we had solid evidence, on three specific titles, that the detectives were able to contact and work with eBay," Kelleher said in a recent email.
On October 14, Cecera was arrested at his home in New Rochelle.
"Around the time of the arrest, I had a joke with one of the officers," Cassano said. "I told him, 'When you're ready to throw the book at this guy, let me know. I want to supply the book!'"
He added, "And it would be a Jane's book!"
