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On campus burglaries reach 5 year high

 According to the Campus Crime Report produced by the VSUPD, on-campus burglaries have more than doubled in under a year.
 Burglary is defined as the unlawful entry of a structure to commit a crime.
 Some believe the influx in the student population plays a part in the number of burglaries, but the university law enforcement thinks otherwise.
 “Since the dorms feel more like home, students tend to let their guard down,” Josh Luke, Corporal said.
 Cpl. Luke and Officer Juan Arzayus also said students on campus should always take the proper safety precautions such as locking doors and keeping valuables out of plain sight. They also advise students to keep serial numbers of their belongings in case they are ever burglarized.
Students who live on campus are concerned with the burglary issue and are not too convinced with the residence halls’ security.  Alexis Parker, freshmen chemistry major, and Stormy Williams, freshmen nursing major, agreed that some adjustments need to be made to dormitory entry.
 “It’s easy to get in facilities,” Parker said. “You just swipe and people come in. No one really asks if you live there.”
 On-campus burglaries have significantly increased in just five years. The four reported burglaries of 2006 pales in comparison to the 30 that have already been reported in 2010. 
 These burglaries affect some students more than others.
 “I walked in our room, I left the door unlocked,” Brandon Ford, freshmen business major said. “These people came in and took my friends phone. I feel uncomfortable.”

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One comment

  1. Here are a few tips I’ve personally found useful:

    * Have you noticed the severed bike chains littered around campus bike racks? A “U lock” is a sturdier way of securing your bike. These locks are much more resistant to cutting, sawing, and prying than most of the chains used around campus.

    * To assist in recovering your laptop in the event it is stolen, invest in a program such as GadgetTrak or Lojack for Laptops. Both of these programs allow the user to activate an alert that will track the location of the laptop. A report is also generated that will provide identifying information (IP Address, MAC address, geographical location, etc.). I prefer GadgetTrak, as the application will also use your laptop’s webcam to snap a photo every 30 minutes and send it to your email. This can help greatly in identifying a suspect, or the location where the laptop is being used.

    GadgetTrak is also available for the iPhone, Blackberry, and Windows Mobile devices.

    GadgetTrak: http://www.gadgettrak.com

    Lojack for Laptops: lojackforlaptops.com

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