Even as musicians rallied around a legendary Athens music venue in the aftermath of an apparent burglary in which thousands of dollars in musical equipment and other electronics were stolen, police wondered if someone "staged" the break-in.

As word of Friday’s alleged burglary spread, well-known musicians with ties to the West Washington Street music venue took to social media to express outrage and pledge monetary support.

R.E.M.’s Mike Mills and Cracker’s David Lowery said on Twitter they were offering a combined $10,000 reward for information leading to the arrest and conviction of those responsible.

Singer-songwriter Jason Isbell followed suit.

"Me and the family will add another 5K. This ain’t ok by any means," Isbell tweeted.

According to police, the burglary occurred between the downtown music venue’s closing at 2:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Friday. Club owner Barrie Buck reported the burglary to police.

Seven amplifiers, eight direct boxes and 37 microphones were stolen, police said. The burglars also tried to take several other amps, but couldn’t due to unknown reasons.

Many of the stolen items were engraved with "40 Watt," police said.

A focus of interest to police was a door that was believed to be the point of entry.

According to police, damage was "minimal"to a large steel door where it appeared forced entry had been made, and it was possible the burglar got into the club with a key.

"While not impossible, it would have been difficult, and/or required know-how for entry to be made on this back door," Senior Police Officer Nathaniel Franco noted in his report of the incident. "I think it is also possible that someone with a key entered and committed this burglary and ‘staged’ the damage to the back door to make it look like forced entry was made."

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