Police say thieves broke into the Tulare County Democrats' temporary headquarters this past weekend. Volunteers found out Sunday afternoon when they went inside they discovered a 60-inch TV, surround sound system and computer were all taken.
"It feels like a violation and we're a small organization and funded all by our members," Carol Clarke of the Tulare County Democratic Central Committee said.
The side door was also damaged and thieves tore down a banner and sifted through a filing cabinet.
"We're assuming they thought that we left money in here and went through it for the money," Clarke said.
The real clincher with this crime - the HD TV they had rented for the presidential debates was gone. In total they're estimating a near $5 thousand loss.
The Tulare County Democrats planned on using the TV for their debate watching party on Monday. They said they will still hold the event despite the break-in.
"We could be paranoid and assume we were targeted but we're not going to change. What we're going to do which is set back up and get back on track and we're going to borrow another TV for tonight we're going to get another computer that we borrow, we're just going to take them home at night from now on," Clarke said.
While Visalia police are following up on leads they don't believe the group was targeted for their political party affiliation.
"Temporary business that come in with valuable property can tend to be targets of this type of crime," Sgt. Amy Watkins of the Visalia Police Department said.
The office is in a location that receives a lot of foot and vehicle traffic. Visalia police are hoping someone saw something and can report it to police.
