One thousand dollars worth of textbooks was recently stolen from
the bookstore in LuValle Commons, and two individuals thought to be
involved in the robbery have been detained by university police for
other offenses.
The two suspects, who are not affiliated with UCLA, were
arrested on separate occasions in early February. A third suspect
in the case has not yet been detained, said Chet Cohen, security
and loss prevention manager for the Associated Students of
UCLA.
During the LuValle robbery, the three individuals entered the
ASUCLA store separately and quickly left with one or two textbooks
at a time, Cohen said. After a couple of trips to the bookstore
over the course of about a week, the store manager contacted
security.
Cohen said he used in-store videotapes to help identify the
suspects, and worked with UCPD to apprehend them.
One of the men arrested was stopped in his vehicle for a traffic
violation, and an officer detained him after finding four small
baggies of cocaine in the car, police said. There were stolen
textbooks in the vehicle, but the individual has not yet been
linked to the robbery, police added.
Textbook prices have risen in the last several years, and
UCLA’s buyback program, which purchases textbooks from
students for cash, makes the textbook stores a target, said Keith
Schoen, retail director for ASUCLA.
Thieves can steal books and sell them back for a percentage of
their value. This winter quarter, ASUCLA carried 3,566 titles, 160
of which are worth over $100, Schoen said.
Stolen textbooks were a significant problem at the Ackerman
Union store in 2003. Cohen said at least five individuals, not
affiliated with UCLA, were arrested with between $100 and $400
worth of merchandise last year. Additionally, last summer, nearly
$22,000 worth of textbooks were stolen from Ackerman Union.
Though security cameras and bag checks were already in place,
new security measures were implemented to combat theft.
There are new policies limiting the number of books a person can
sell back each quarter, and the buyback program requires an ID to
complete the transaction.
Cohen said theft has decreased significantly in Ackerman, and
that before the recent theft at LuValle Commons, that store
hadn’t seen any substantial amounts of crime.
“The things we put in place really send its own message.
It’s much tougher to get in now,” Schoen said.
Cohen said ASUCLA has an aggressive policy against theft, and
that those who steal may have to pay a civil restitution fine and
might be prosecuted. Students who steal are referred to the Dean of
Students for academic discipline.
“We’re not lenient with our penalties,” Cohen
said.