Rome homeless shelter targeted by burglars

ROME, Ga. - Police are investigating a break-in at a homeless shelter currently under construction in Rome. The theft occurred at the William S. Davies Homeless Shelter on East 18th Street late Saturday night or early Sunday morning.

The crook entered the facility and stole a laptop computer, about two hundred dollars cash and some checks. Shelter executive director Allison Trask said much of that money was raised during an event at the shelter on Saturday. "We had our event on Saturday night and one of our board members, our board president, had a friend who donated a t-shirt with our logo. We sold those and collected cash to go toward finishing the building, and any future projects we have here."

The shelter, which is set to open later this year, was built from the ground up. Trask said several people had access to the work site during construction, and there was no sign of forced entry. "Nothing was damaged. No windows were open so our best guess is it was someone who had a code to get access for the doors."

Monetary donations are being accepted via the shelter's website at http://daviesshelter.com to replace the stolen computer and other items.