The Division of Campus Safety (DCS) arrested Mark Moore, the suspect behind numerous robberies of wallets and electronics on campus, at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday afternoon after receiving a tip call from a staff member in Sturm Hall.
Stephen Banet, public information officer for DCS, said the staff member saw Moore when he entered an office suite where she was working, and she immediately called campus safety’s emergency line. Six officers responded to the scene and apprehended Moore, who was then escorted from campus by the Denver Police Department (DPD).
After apprehending Moore, DCS searched his bag, a large black messenger bag, and found an iphone which he had just stolen from a student at the Newman Center of Performing Arts.
Moore is suspected of a series of theft crimes on campus dating back to July 1. Banet said he could confirm four on-campus thefts performed by Moore, though DCS suspects he can be attributed to several more, including thefts of iphones, wallets and laptop computers. He often struck during late morning, when students and staff would exit buildings for lunch.
DCS has issued two crime notices to students and staff this school year, including one sent out on December 6 which Banet suspects helped in Tuesday’s arrest.
Moore has also committed thefts in the Aurora Community College campus and throughout the larger Denver metro area. DPD speculates he was talking the light rail from location to location to commit these thefts.
Banet said it is unusual to have a repeat offender commit crimes on the same campus several times, as they usually do not return once they have committed a crime. The reasons Moore selected DU and Aurora Community College are unknown.
Moore has several crimes on his record, including shoplifting, assault, forgery, theft and parole violation. Banet said Moore would likely be sentenced in court to serve his parole sentence in jail.
Banet said the arrest of Moore showed effective communication between DCS and university students and staff.
“I really think that this shows the relationship Campus Safety has with the university community as a whole,” said Banet. He recognized the awareness of the staff member that called DCS, as well as the responsiveness of officers.
He said the arrest is testament to Campus Safety’s “community policing model,” which requires officers to walk through the campus, university building and residence halls while on duty to make connections with university staff and students.
Banet urged students to remain vigilant although Moore has been apprehended.
“Even though DU is safe they (students) can’t take that for granted,” Banet said, and urged students to always keep track of their items and ask someone to watch them if stepping away temporarily.
