Students, employee charged with burglary of bookstore

Two Cal State Long Beach students and a campus employee were arrested and charged with burglary Thursday when they allegedly attempted to sneak out the employee entrance of the University Bookstore with stolen textbooks.

Lawrence Torres Castro, 25, a bookstore employee was also charged with two counts of commercial burglary in the same incident.

Eric Howard Nerhood and Kevin John Hood, both 22, were detained by bookstore manager Fred Neely until police arrived.

The suspects told police that they followed an employee through a restricted door which is protected by a combination lock. But upon viewing surveillance videos, Neely discovered that the two actually used the combination to enter the door, according to University Police Investigator John L. Bellah.

Upon further questioning the suspects admitted that a bookstore employee gave them the combination lock in a telephone conversation two days earlier, police said.

The grand theft charge was elevated to burglary, which denotes premeditation.

Bellah said he believes this is the students' first attempt.

"All textbooks have a magnetic strip which trips off an alarm at the front of the store," said Gary Adams, general manager of the 49er shops.

"Most of our employees are honest; unfortunately in this theft incident there was help from the inside."

Bellah said that in the past year the University Bookstore, as well as students, has been victimized by thefts of textbooks, resulting in a loss of several thousand dollars.

"Those who steal textbooks usually intend to sell them back for money," Bellah said.

Two students were arrested for stealing textbooks from dorm rooms last spring.