SANTA ANA : Janitor Arrested in Courthouse Thefts

A 17-year county employee was arrested on suspicion of stealing more than $20,000 worth of property from the Orange County Courthouse and other county facilities, authorities said Monday.

Stephen McGrauth, 37, a janitor, was arrested April 6 when he returned to retrieve stolen power tools in a courthouse stairwell, according to Lt. Dan Martini of the Orange County Sheriff’s Department.

The Marshal’s Department, which is responsible for courthouse security, received information that the power tools, reported stolen April 5, had been seen in the stairwell. After several hours of surveillance, McGrauth was seen collecting the tools and arrested, Martini said.

A search warrant issued for McGrauth’s Corona home turned up computer equipment worth more than $20,000, which authorities suspect was stolen from county buildings. The equipment, mostly in the form of disassembled computer parts, included monitors, keyboards, printers, software and microprocessors. Most of the property was listed as missing in two previous thefts reported at the courthouse.

McGrauth was arrested without incident and booked at the Orange County Jail, but later released on his own recognizance, Martini said. He is scheduled to be arraigned May 4.

The county General Services Administration has placed McGrauth on paid administrative leave during the investigation.

Martini called the thefts “bizarre,” saying investigators are still trying to identify some of the computer components.

“We are looking at some other locations,” Martini said, “other county facilities where he’s worked,” including the Hall of Administration.

Apart from petty thefts, which often go unreported, crime in the courthouse is “not very common,” Martini said.