Published: April 17, 2008 11:40 pm         

Publisher’s Notebook: Not the first time our worker taken by force

A call from Laurel Dispatch at 3:30 in the morning can be very alarming. But I was too groggy to fully comprehend the statement from the dispatcher about one of our workers who was found stuffed into the back of a trunk.

The worker apparently was grabbed by force from the curb at a high-traffic area, presumably the North Main Kroger, forced into the trunk of a car and driven to Barbourville.

There was evidence that a crowbar and a pair of bolt cutters was used on the worker, but the worker would not break.

Fortunately, an alert Barbourville police officer pulled over a suspicious vehicle early Monday morning and freed our worker before more damage was done. The officer arrested the couple in the car on multiple charges. Evidence indicated that they had abused several other newspaper workers on a crime spree from Richmond to London to Barbourville.

I told the dispatcher that I would contact the Barbourville PD later Monday morning and make arrangements to pick up our worker. There was no rush. It would be fine. I rolled over and went back to sleep.

After all, it wasn’t the first time I had to deal with thieves stealing one of our coin-operated newspaper racks.

I can’t figure out why dumb criminals want to go through the trouble of stealing bulky newspaper racks and breaking them open for a few dollars in change. The racks have armored housing around the coin box and are secured by a one-inch thick bolt. Some also are filled with concrete blocks or sand, which makes them even more unwieldy.

The couple apparently tried to break into our rack first, but their bolt cutters broke. So they stuffed the rack into their trunk, intent on breaking into it later.

The couple had been living in Richmond and were on their way back home to Harlan County, the officer said. They allegedly had broken into newspaper racks in Richmond and London on their way south.

They wanted the money to buy drugs, I speculated to the officer. Apparently not in this case, he said. They were trying to get money to buy enough gas to get back home. Well, I can certainly understand that. If gas prices continue to rise, no coin-operated machine will be safe.

But it doesn’t excuse the kidnapping and abuse of innocent newspaper racks. They dutifully dispense their products year after year and ask for nothing in return, except for a little paint and WD 40 now and then.

I fondly remember the first newspaper racks I ever purchased back in 1984 when I took over The Whitley Republican in Williamsburg. The paper didn’t have any racks at all and I was so proud the day the truck unloaded 20 bright and shiny racks with our logo on the side.

Well, the first weekend, six of the racks disappeared. One was found partially submerged in the Cumberland River. One that was found several weeks later had been converted into a Taj Mahal for a fighting rooster.

I got a call that one rack had been found on a road in the south end of the county. I spotted the lonely Whitley Republican rack standing in the middle of a dirt road. It had given up its money, but not without a struggle. All that work for about $4.50 in quarters.

The good thing about newspaper racks is that they can be refurbished without much trouble. Here at the Sentinel, we keep spare parts on hand and bring them in on a rotating basis for maintenance and painting.

We are probably the only business in town that buys John Deere paint from London Farm Supply and yet doesn’t own a John Deere tractor.

We’ll fetch the little fella from Barbourville, fix him, paint him if necessary and have him back on the street hopefully by the end of the week.

It’s a tough world for newspaper racks, They have to be strong against the elements, customers who use incorrect change or pull on the door while inserting the coins, and as always, stupid criminals.

And people who are trying to get just enough gas to get home.