Editor’s note: This article was initially published in The Daily Gazette, Swarthmore’s online, daily newspaper founded in Fall 1996. As of Fall 2018, the DG has merged with The Phoenix. See the about page to read more about the DG.
On January 15, some Roberts residents returned to campus to find that their rooms were not as they had left them. Public Safety reported that several rooms had been tampered with in various ways, and that the culprits stole approximately $130 worth of items, including bedding, a pillow, a rice cooker, and chopsticks. In total, they recorded four counts of theft, two counts of criminal trespassing, and one count of burglary/forcible entry.
“I was pretty confused because the robber took some random things. I didn’t know how to feel, cause there were some things that were pretty expensive and necessary for living,” said Emily Cai ‘18, a Roberts resident who initially reported the thefts to Public Safety. “I had an expensive calculator lying around but people didn’t take that, but they took a comforter and a body pillow.”
In addition to the theft, some Roberts residents found that their rooms and personal items had been tampered with, according to the Public Safety crime log from January 11-19. Public Safety did not respond to requests for comment on the incident.
“[Another resident’s] bed was slept in, and there was a 2-liter coke bottle that was slightly drunk with glasses still on the table, and her bed was ruffled and everything,” Cai said.
According to an earlier Public Safety report, the identity of the trespassers is unknown.
Isaac Lee ’18 contributed reporting to this article.
