Sheriff sale held at defunct store

Today, $20 will buy 20 Big Macs at McDonald's, a ChiaPet or 13.5 trips on a SEPTA bus. Or, if you are lucky, you can purchase a fax machine -- slightly used. Wharton sophomore Faquiry Diaz did just that yesterday afternoon. He took advantage of a massive sheriff sale at Quantum Books, held from 11:30 a.m. to noon yesterday at 140 34th Street. At a sheriff sale, the police sell confiscated items. According to Caroline Schultz, lawyer for the landlord of Quantum Books, the sale followed the tenant's eviction. The stock consisted mostly of empty wooden bookcases and, of course, a fax machine. "It is a sheriff sale to satisfy a judgement," she said, refusing to elaborate. Diaz said this was not what he and his friends had anticipated. "We just came in because we thought they would be selling technical books," he said. He added that he doubts the fax machine works. But he said he is hopeful that he will be able to restore it. "I live in the Science and Technology wing of Kings Court," he said. "We will just play around with it and see what we can do." Diaz and his friends also purchased a large bookcase for the Science and Technology wing for a mere $20. Shultz said the new management staff may be having its own sale in the future of whatever was not sold yesterday. "If they do, they'll advertise," she said. The sale was held next door to the former location of Quantum Books, because it has since been replaced by The Camera Shop Inc. Camera Shop Manager Scott Telford said he moved into the location the day after Thanksgiving. He added that he does not know the circumstances surrounding the space's availability. "All I know is that my company became aware that this location was becoming available," he said. "We were able to come to an agreement and relocate to a larger space." Telford said he does not know what will be moving into the space his store formerly occupied.

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