By: Thomas Lepper
On September 30th at approximately 6:40 am, the Fredericton police received a call of a break-in at the Fredericton Public Library. According to the reports, the infrastructure on the first floor of the library had been broken as well as several windows. Electronics such as computers had been broken and over $300 of internal funds the staff had gathered were stolen.
In addition, the culprit ripped a fountain from its mounts, damaged walls, plugged several of the drains, and left many of the library’s taps running. These actions caused water damage on the first floor.
According to the manager of building services in Fredericton: “All of the fire extinguishers had been sprayed, walls were broken down to gain access to locked spaces and computers and TV monitors were damaged.”
However, it appears that none of the books in the library had been damaged or taken. We can take solace knowing that the library’s most valuable resources have remained unscathed.
The library remained closed for a week with the damage primarily affecting the children’s section.
Unfortunately, several of the children’s programs run by the library have since been put on hold because they relied on the technology that was destroyed and stolen.
Scott Brown estimated the damages range between $50,000 to $100,000.
While reviewing security cameras from community and public safety cameras, police had identified a suspect. However, the police did not need to look for long. Thirty-one-year-old Kelly Gordon Kleim, identified as the alleged perpetrator, turned himself in to the police on October 3rd.
He remains in police custody and had a bail/first appearance scheduled for October 7th. When the day arrived, Kelly Kleim was given an adjournment for October 28th. He remains in police custody.
Kelly Gordon Kleims was charged with breaking and entering mischief over $5000 dollars and theft over $5000.
• S. 348 (1) (B) (D) – Break and Enter
• S. 430(3) – Mischief Over $5000
• S. 334(a) – Theft Over $5000
The library resumed operation after a week-long shutdown on October 8th, 2024.
File: 24-23050
