Judge sets $50,000 bond in equipment theft case

A Cook County judge set bond at $50,000 Thursday for a Chicago man charged with stealing five laptop computers and a projector worth about $5,800 from a Hoffman Estates educational services company last year.

Albert Henderson, of the 700 block of East 84th Street, has been charged with burglary in the incident which police say occurred Nov 1, 2009 at the Career Education Corp.

Henderson, 45, was in the custody of Des Plaines police on another matter last month when Des Plaines officers contacted Hoffman Estates authorities indicating they might be interested in talking with Henderson about the burglary, prosecutors said.

Hoffman Estates police interviewed Henderson, who identified himself as the person in a CEC surveillance video, said Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Mark Javier.

Henderson also made a statement to police in which he said he sold the laptops for $150 each, Javier said.

Henderson's background includes a conviction for a 2006 burglary for which he received a six-year prison sentence, Javier said. He also received 30 months probation for a 1997 theft, Javier said.

If convicted, Henderson could face three to seven years in prison. He next appears in court on Aug. 6.