California IN BRIEF : STANFORD : Ex-Guard Held in Theft of Art, Books

The arrest of a former Stanford University security guard with a taste for American Indian artifacts and rare books on slavery appears to solve a series of school thefts that occurred in the 1970s, police said Tuesday. The stolen items, which ranged from seven Haida Indian argillite sculptures to about 200 rare books, including some from the 14th Century, were found on display in Stephen Crawford’s home in Gilroy, about 40 miles south of Stanford. “It appears he wanted the things for himself,” Stanford Police Chief Marvin Herrington said. “There’s no evidence that he was selling or trading them.” Crawford, 46, could not be reached for comment. Authorities said he is unemployed, but worked as a security guard at the university in the mid-1970s. Police arrested him at his home Saturday after taking experts on art, rare books and artifacts with them to verify items. He was arrested on suspicion of five counts of possession of stolen property and one count of possession of hashish, police said.