Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883

Hanson's Bar and Eagles Club hit in early morning burglary

Eddy County Sheriff's Office reviewing surveillance footage

In the early morning hours of Saturday, Aug. 6, Hanson's Bar and the Eagles Club in downtown New Rockford were burglarized.

According to Eddy County Sheriff Paul Lies, sometime between the hours of 2:45 and 5:30 a.m., gaming machines were busted open at both locations, as well as the dart board at Hanson's Bar. The burglar also attempted to breach the ATM at Hanson's, but was unsuccessful.

Lies said the owner of Hanson's Bar, Dalton Weber, called to report the break-in at around 9 a.m., and after finishing his work there, discovered that the south side door of the New Rockford Eagles Club had also been broken into.

"I could see that the office door had been kicked in, and some of the gaming machines had been pried open," said Sheriff Lies about the scene inside the Eagles Club. He added that they're still working to determine the point of entry at Hanson's Bar.

According to Lies, the Sheriff's Department is in possession of camera footage of the break-in inside the Eagles Club, and is currently reviewing that footage.

The footage appears to reveal just one individual inside, said Lies, and that he took his time rummaging through the building.

"This probably isn't the person's first time," said Lies. "Because he was aware of the camera systems and had taken the DVRs that are connected to the camera systems so there wouldn't be footage."

Sheriff Lies said the break-ins appear to have begun with Hanson's Bar before moving to the Eagles Club later in the morning, and added the Sheriff's Department is currently reviewing footage on different cameras in the downtown area in hopes of gathering more evidence. The investigation is ongoing by the Eddy County Sheriff's Office.

The New Rockford Eagles Club posted on Facebook that they'll be closed the remainder of the weekend "due to an incident that affects safety."

This is a developing story, and the New Rockford Transcript will provide updates as they become available.