LACKAWANNA COUNTY -- Marywood University in Lackawanna County is dealing with its second case of vandalism in just a week.
This time, vandals damaged a piece of equipment worth about $50,000.
Campus security officials said this latest case of vandalism happened sometime over the weekend. Monday morning, nursing professors discovered that a very valuable piece of lab equipment, which students need for upcoming final exams, was missing.
Nursing students at Marywood University study by using high tech mannequins that simulate symptoms they could encounter on the job.
"To help us in the real world, it`s supposed to simulate what we`re supposed to be doing for our real patients when we get out of here and graduate, fingers crossed," said junior nursing major Brittany Hypolite.
The mannequins are expensive, worth about $50,000 each. So, professors were upset when they found this one damaged and lying outside the Natural Sciences Building Monday morning.
An arm was ripped off and the body covered in blue paint.
"To think that someone who is here to learn would do something like that to a dummy, it just doesn`t seem very smart or right. Especially since they cost so much money for a school that you`re going to. You just paid to destroy something that`s supposed to help you with your career," Hypolite said.
Only nursing students can access the lab over the weekend. Campus security doesn't think a nursing student is to blame here, they suspect the vandals broke in through a window.
Marywood campus security noticed a similarity between the vandalism in the nursing lab and another case of vandalism that happened here on campus last week to a statue. That similarity is blue paint.
The statue was covered in the stuff the weekend before. A nuisance, but the second case of vandalism is now affecting students.
"It takes away from our nursing students, they need those now, especially with finals coming up," said Marywood's Chief of Campus Security Michael Pasqualicchio said.
The case has now been turned over to Dunmore police.
"If anyone knows any information, or saw anything in the neighborhood, Seminary Street, North Washington, Adams, on Friday night into Sunday, anything that was strange, if they could just contact us we`d appreciate that," Pasqualicchio added.
Because of how valuable the medical mannequin is, if the vandals are caught they could face felony charges.
The nursing department does have two other mannequins so finals will go ahead as scheduled.