RPI THEFT RAISES FEARS DATA WERE STOLEN.(CAPITAL REGION)

Byline: MARK McGUIRE Staff writer

Officials at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute are anxious to reclaim computers stolen to see if any research by professors is affected.

Three college-age students are charged with stealing $34,000 worth of computer equipment from the campus. An arraignment scheduled yesterday in City Police Court was postponed until next month.

The computers -- including hard drives containing professors' research -- remain in the hands of authorities as evidence. School officials are uncertain if any valuable data is contained in the recovered computer components.

``Until these items, which are in custody of police, are …