Since winter quarter commenced on Jan. 4, 13 thefts have taken place at DU according to Sergeant James Johnston, community partnerships and training coordinator for DU Campus Safety (DCS). Stolen items include several bikes, a license plate, a phone and a wallet.
Johnston says theft is the number one crime on campus, occurring an average of 125 times per year based on data from past 10 years. There were 149 reported instances in 2014 and 137 in 2015. Despite that slight drop from 2014 to 2015, Johnston says theft is still a “major issue” for both safety and financial reasons. On the financial side, the 137 thefts in 2015, for example, were worth $80,000.
According to Johnston, this is a problem that requires action from the entire DU community and not just DCS.
“One of the reasons that it [theft] is so hard for us to combat is that in the vast majority of these cases, the stolen items were left unattended out in the open,” he said. “We do our best to find these items and pick them up before they are stolen but it’s impossible for us to be everywhere all of the time.”
Johnston said he is by no means blaming anyone, but that people must be more careful with their belongings.
“Of course, it is never the victim’s fault,” he said. “But this makes it difficult for us to prevent this crime. For example, we have several cases a year of students leaving their laptop and books out in the library while they go to dinner for over an hour. When they return, their items are gone.”
Furthermore, Johnston explained that leaving valuables in cars is never a good idea. However, there is a safe way to go about it, as well as some alternative options.
“If you must leave something valuable in your car, place it in the glove box, trunk or under a seat,” he said. “Students should also use the lockers available in the Anderson Academic Commons if they don’t want to take items with them during study breaks. Staff and Faculty should secure their offices every time they leave, even if only going down the hall for a quick meeting.”
Closer to finals week, DCS plans to run an outreach campaign to spread awareness about the theft issue at DU. For the time being, members of the DU community can reach out to DCS at 303-871-3000.
