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Used Bookstore Caught Buying Stolen Books
John Mutter -- 2/7/00

In a case reminiscent of book-theft scandals in San Francisco and New York City in recent years, several people, including the owner and employees of a used bookstore, were arrested late December in Denver and accused of stealing an estimated $500,000 worth of books during the past two years, according to the Denver Post.

The six thieves, who were organized in two rings, stole primarily from the Tattered Cover but also from Media Play and B. Dalton Bookseller outlets. They then sold the books to Ichabod's Books, a used bookstore at 2 S. Broadway. Ichabod's owner, Kathleen Gomendi, was charged with conspiracy to commit theft by receiving, and three employees were charged with theft by receiving.

An investigator told the Post, "Ichabod's was the destination of choice due to the amount they paid for books and the lack of scrutiny as to the books' origins on the part of store personnel."

Gomendi said that the store had no set policy about buying books and claimed that several times when she was suspicious about the origins of certain books, she called Tattered Cover "only to receive little or no help."

According to prosecutors, who investigated the situation for two years, some of the thieves went to Ichabod's two or three times a day, selling 10 or more books during each visit. Several specialized in stealing from the Tattered Cover's two locations; one stole approximately $54,000 worth of books from the huge Denver independent. Another single-handedly stole some $145,000 worth of books from several bookstores, including the Tattered Cover.

In a nice twist, one of the thieves said that he sometimes stole books from other stores and sold them to Ichabod's, then stole them from the used bookstore's shelves and resold them to Ichabod's.
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