(The following report by Taryn Bianchin appeared at www.KOB.com on January 14, 2010.)
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. — Train robberies are a part of New Mexico’s history dating back to the time when outlaws controlled the west and a locomotive or stagecoach was easy bait.
In modern-day Valencia County, that’s still happening.
Valencia County sheriff Rene Rivera reports within the past month, there have been several burglaries involving BNSF trains where thieves have plundered high-dollar items being stored inside train cars.
His investigators are working with the BNSF police on solving a rash of train burglaries that have happened throughout Valencia County recently. In December, thieves managed to break the padlocks off the cars when the train stopped briefly and heisted big screen tv’s, all-terrain vehicles, even toilet paper.
A similar string of thefts occurred about a year ago on BNSF trains, though robberies occurred in Arizona and California as well. Back then, the thieves were using U-Haul trucks to load up the stolen loot. BNSF officials say that in some cases, they were stealing from the trains while the trains were moving.
Deputies say the BNSF rail yard has many surveillance cameras on the property. Authorities will be looking through that video along with police to see if they can catch the people responsible for the burglaries.
So far, no suspects have been apprehended.