The parking lot at Fayette County High School was unsupervised for just one hour and 15 minutes one day last week, but in that time, four cars were stripped of tape decks and CD players.

According to Fayette County High School Principal Gary Phillips, the security guard who normally patrols the lot had a doctor's appointment the day of the thefts. "We knew he was not here," Phillips said. The parking area was supervised until 10:15 a.m. by Phillips and Assistant Principal Bob Hokkannen took over at 11:30 a.m.

Phillips said he was told by police that the perpetrators were "professionals" who used crowbars to break out the audio equipment. "It didn't take them 10 minutes," he said.

"We're 99.5 percent sure it wasn't a student," Phillips said. "The police related to us that they were having similar problems at the Pavilion and with other schools in the area," he said.

"None of us like what has happened," Phillips said. He termed the break-ins an isolated incident and said school officials would "sit down and see what we can do."

Students pay an annual parking fee which covers the cost of the security guard, Phillips explained. He related his concerns over the safety issues involved were shared with parents of students at the school.