While the semester only began a few weeks ago, the Institute has already been affected by a considerable amount of theft and other criminal incidents. In recent weeks, over $50,000 worth of computer equipment was stolen from a lab in the CII, there was a new appearance of the public lewdness suspect, and arrests were made for assault and aggravated harassment.
According to Public Safety Lieutenant Ruth Vibert, “It’s been an exceptionally busy year for us.” Vibert has been with the department for four years and she said that this is the busiest she has seen.
Earlier this month, a few pieces of computer equipment were stolen from a lab in the CII during the weekend. The theft was reported to Public Safety, who asked for the serial numbers of the stolen devices. As the people filing the report did not have the numbers at the time, they were asked to come back later with the information.
In the meantime, a second burglary occurred in the lab the next weekend. This time, over $50,000 in equipment was stolen. The 20 unopened tablet PCs that were stolen had been donated by Hewlett Packard.
Vibert explained that the investigation into the thefts from the CII lab is primarily being done by the Troy Police Department. She said that while the investigation is ongoing, there are currently no concrete suspects.
Meanwhile, Public Safety last week issued a crime alert about a male exposing himself. That incident occurred last Tuesday, around 1 am in the Beman Lane area. The suspect had fled when DPS and the Troy Police arrived.
Vibert said that the description and method of operation match that of the public lewdness suspect that had been sighted on campus several times last year. The suspect did not attempt to grab the individual who filed this latest complaint. According to the crime alert, the suspect is a white male of approximately 20-30 years of age. The suspect was also described as 5’10” and weighing 170 lbs. with light hair. Vibert said they have been doing increased patrols in order to try and apprehend this individual.
Also last week, a student was allegedly asked for money and then assaulted by three men near Sage and Burdett Avenues. When the incident went out over the radio, a parking and transportation employee spotted men matching the descriptions at Pizza Bella. Both Public Safety and Troy police responded and took the suspects into custody.
In addition, two non-students were arrested by Nason Hall and charged with aggravated harassment and criminal trespass last weekend after making threatening phone calls. Earlier in the month, a student’s room in BARH was broken into and some items were stolen. Vibert said that, like the CII burglary, the investigation into that continues, but there are no concrete suspects.
While DPS is acknowledging that this has been a very busy period, only some students have noticed any visible difference. Avi Mirchandani ’08 said he hasn’t really noticed much of a difference in incidents this year. He added he still feels just as safe on campus.
At the same time, however, the victim of the BARH robbery, August Fietkau ’08, who is a member of The Polytechnic Editorial Board, said he “feel[s] much more unsafe” on campus since the incident. He explained, “obviously, my room was violated,” and in addition, it seemed that the incident had not been very professionally handled when he reported it to Public Safety. As a result, he also went to the Troy Police to have a report filed there as well and, overall, did not feel the incident was being fully investigated by either agency.
In addition to the thefts in the CII and BARH room, a laptop was also reported stolen. Vibert explained some of the procedures for when laptops are stolen. As one method of helping to recover stolen laptops, serial numbers are recorded by Public Safety and then sent out to other law enforcement agencies around the state. If they are located, they can then be returned to their owner. The statistics on how many stolen laptops are normally recovered were not readily available at press time.
