News

Thievery on rise in McCabe, security presence up

In print | February 19, 2009

Instances of theft in McCabe Library have increased over the past month, though overall theft this year is still low in comparison to recent years. Most reported instances of theft have been in residence halls.

According to Director of Public Safety Owen Redgrave, only five of the 25 reported thefts have occurred in McCabe. The five thefts were (1) cash from a wallet; (2) a laptop, iPod and backpack; (3) cash and credit cards; (4) a backpack, notebook, book and pens; and (5) a backpack, passport, credit card and calculator. Since this is still a significant number, Redgrave said that patrol frequency has increased in McCabe — a standard response for this type of situation.

“Public Safety officers routinely walk through McCabe (and other select buildings) as a visible deterrent to crime,” he said in an e-mail. “This is performed randomly so as not to establish a pattern that could be used by a potential criminal. Wherever we find increased criminal activity, the number of these patrols is increased to the extent that time and manpower permit.”

At the beginning of this year, lockers were installed on the second and third floors to prevent thefts. But their use has been minimal, even in light of the increased theft.

“There’s been a very slight increase in the use of lockers, but most are empty each day,” Access and Lending Services Supervisor Alison Masterpasqua said. “We would really like to see students use them more. We have 20 lockers available on each of the top floors and generally only three or four are checked out at a time.”

Public Safety adds another preventative measure by “also routinely inform[ing] staff in such sites of reported criminal activity and enlist[ing] their aid by way of increased vigilance and prompt reporting of suspicious people and/or activity,” Redgrave said.

There has not been any discernible pattern with the thefts, such as date, time and day, he added.
According to Redgrave, there may be a large percentage of thefts in McCabe because it is a public place. The library is using several initiatives, such as ‘If I were a thief’ notes on materials, to prevent students from leaving things unattended.

Earlier this month, the backpack of Bo Sun ’10 was stolen from McCabe. In addition to textbooks and notes, Sun, who is originally from China, lost his passport and important legal documents, including the I-94 form necessary for all international students. He said he had these valuables in his bag because he was planning on photocopying them later.

Sun said that he was studying by the gender-neutral bathroom on the second floor. Returning from a trip to the bathroom, he found that his backpack had been stolen.

“I was really surprised,” he said of how quickly it happened. He was not sure if the perpetrator had been hiding or if he luckily stumbled upon an unattended backpack that possibly could have a laptop in it.

“It’s really inconvenient,” said Sun, who not only has to borrow his teacher’s books and notes to catch up with his schoolwork but also has to get a new passport and pay $300 for a new I-94 form.
Sun posted fliers across campus and McCabe offering a $200 reward for his backpack.
Redgrave advised that students can be more proactive about stopping thefts.

“It continues to hold true that virtually all of the thefts on campus are where property has been left unsecured and unattended,” Redgrave said. “Locking valuables up and/or keeping them in one’s possession should be an effective tool to reduce the risk of thefts.”

Sun said that he thinks the college should do more. The library should encourage students to bring their belongings with them to the bathroom since they typically do not, and they should provide tables in the bathrooms so students could have a place to put their belongings, he said.