"Routine" Burglary At Romney HQ

The campaign headquarters for Republican presidential contender Mitt Romney was burglarized over the weekend and a television and computers stolen.

A campaign spokesman for the former Massachusetts governor described the crime as "a routine burglary" and did not believe it was politically motivated.

"Several laptops and a TV were stolen," campaign spokesman Eric Fehrnstrom said. "All the computers are password-enabled and the hard drives are encrypted. The only thing they're good for is parts."

"We immediately contacted the Boston Police Department. We reported the theft of a number of laptops and a television," Romney spokesman Kevin Madden added.

The Boston Police Department was called to the scene, an office building overlooking Boston Harbor in the city's North End, but a report was not immediately available, said Officer Eddy Chrispin.

The incident is the second of its kind recently involving a presidential contender. Last month a man was arrested and charged with breaking into a Hartford, Conn., office belonging to Sen. Chris Dodd, who is seeking the Democratic presidential nomination.

The accused lived in a city shelter and had a lengthy arrest record, and a city police official said that crime likely was prompted to support a drug habit.

A burglary at the Democratic National Committee headquarters at the Watergate building in Washington on June 17, 1972, triggered a coverup that ultimately led to the resignation of President Richard M. Nixon.