Program could help STOP campus theft

With the same crimes occurring year after, students may wonder
what UCPD is doing to alleviate the situation.

The biggest crime problems on campus continue to be backpack,
wallet, cell phone and laptop theft.

The Director of Community Service for the university police
Nancy Greenstein said these are typically crimes of
opportunity.

Wallets and cell phones are usually taken from backpacks left
unattended in the library or dining halls.

Laptops are also often stolen from libraries, but there is a
remarkably low number of registered laptops being stolen.

Laptops, as well as other office equipment, can be registered
with the computer STOP program for a $20 fee. This can be arranged
through the Community Service Officer program located at the UCPD
building at the north entrance of Westwood Plaza.

This system places a security plate that bears a unique ID
number, a warning message and a toll free number on the
computer.

When the plate is being sealed, there is also an automatic
chemical etching of the information underneath the plate in case
someone manages to remove the plate, a feat that requires as much
as 800 pounds of force.

The program is aimed at preventing the resale of the item
stolen.

Greenstein said the big red sticker included in the STOP program
usually deters people from stealing the equipment.

The problem is, once an item is reported stolen, it is unlikely
it will be returned, she said.

In any event, officers are required to take a report, which
includes a description of the item. If an item is returned, it is
usually because someone brings it in to the UCPD.

Greenstein stresses the importance of reporting items stolen,
because such action could yield a trend of items being stolen at a
certain time or place.

“Sometimes we set up a system where we keep an eye on the
area and catch the person that way,” Greenstein said.

Other UC campuses report theft as the biggest crime they
encounter although the official Annual Report won’t be out
until later this year.

She said when the items are returned, most of the time the
contents are missing.

“The likeliness of getting these things back is very
narrow,” said Director of Crime Prevention for UC Irvine
Caroline Alberti.

Despite the large number of thefts that still occur, students
aren’t always concerned about having their items stolen.

“I don’t really think about it. Usually, I just ask
someone to watch my stuff if I’m going to leave, and
that’s it,” said third-year sociology student John
Ok.

“I’m careful about my things, but I don’t feel
the need to be worried,” said fourth-year sociology student
Lih-Wern Wang.

Those students who have had items stolen are much more
cautious.

“I’m really careful, especially in the dining halls
and the library because my things got stolen two years ago. I lock
my things all the time and ask friends to look at my stuff in the
library,” said third-year psychobiology student Mike
Shaaw.

The preliminary numbers of crime incidents at UCLA listed in the
2002 Annual Report indicate an overall decrease in crime, but
increases in some areas.

The overall decrease can be attributed to the decrease in theft
of motor vehicle parts, building thefts and miscellaneous
thefts.

The biggest increase is in burglaries with 262 reported last
year, compared to 183 the year before. There was also a slight rise
in bicycle and vehicle theft, aggravated assault and rape.

On the Web, www.ucpd.ucla.edu..

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