Personal identifying information of 2.2 million people who have been patients of the University of Utah Hospitals and Clinics or their guarantors over the past 16 years was stolen last week. But police and health officials are giving the thief a unique opportunity to return it without consequence.

The U. is offering a $1,000 cash reward, "no questions asked," for return of the data.

Law enforcement believes the thief did not know what was in the gray metal box when he broke a car window and took it, said Salt Lake County Sheriff Jim Winder. If they have to track down the individual and the stolen material some other way, the penalties could be harsh, he added.

The records are in a form that is not easily accessible. A special computer application must be used to do so.

If, as law enforcement suspects, the thief is some kid "who engaged in a very stupid endeavor," then turning the metal box in with contents intact "is a way to solve the problem," said Tim Fuhrman, special agent in charge for the FBI.

The tapes containing a backup of the master patient billing record had been picked up by courier using a personal vehicle late in the afternoon on June 1, as part of a weekly transfer to storage. The backup is kept at a separate location in case of a disaster, such as fire or earthquake.

But instead of taking the tapes to Perpetual Storage Inc.'s facility in Little Cottonwood Canyon -- a secure vault under 200 feet of solid granite -- the 18-year veteran of the company took them home and left them in the car, parked overnight near 5200 South and 5000 West in Kearns. Sometime between 1:30 and 6:30 a.m., the car window was smashed and the box taken.