School computers rigged for alien hunt?

PHOENIX, Jan. 6 (UPI) -- A former IT director allegedly cost an Arizona school district more than $1 million by rigging its computers to search for intelligent space aliens.

Bradley Niesluchowski, 38, of Mesa resigned from the Higley Unified School District in October, a few days after school officials accused him of a long list of policy violations, The Arizona Republic reported Tuesday. The alleged violations included installing BOINC software, developed at the University of California to allow amateurs to help with the Search for Extra Terrestrial Intelligence -- a project intended to detect signals from life forms other than humans.

In addition to downloading the software onto thousands of school computers, Niesluchowski allegedly rigged the computers to run all the time.

The SETI program, running full time, may have run up $1 million in utility bills, officials say.

Officials say one server appears to be missing. It is named Server 51 -- even though there are only 50 servers in the district's network -- possibly in tribute to Area 51, the military base near Nevada that is often said to be a top-secret site for alien research.

Niesluchowski could face charges that include computer tampering and spending school funds for personal projects.