Someone broke into the basement of the Lincoln Park Zoo's Kovler Lion House overnight and made off with some equipment, including about $3,500 worth of radios, a zoo spokeswoman said Saturday.



Zookeepers arriving at the lion house in preparation for the zoo's opening morning found that someone had broken a window, forced open a steel door and left a ladder in the moat area, officials told police.



The thief or thieves did not gain access to the secure areas where animals are kept overnight.



"At no time was the public, or any of the animals, in danger," said spokeswoman Sharon Dewar.



Dewar said zookeepers' lockers in the basement of the facility were broken into. Hand-held walkie-talkie radios and pepper spray were taken, she said.



The Kovler Lion House was built in 1912, according to a post on the Lincoln Park Zoo's website.





