Following several car break-ins occuring in December and into January, campus safety once again urges students to ensure the safety of their vehicles and belongings.

Approximately seven car break-ins have occured on campus in the past two months, and one vehicle has been stolen. In every instance of reported larceny, the vehicle had been left unlocked. No windows were broken on any of the vehicles. In several instances, the owner of the car had left valuables in plain sight in addition to leaving the doors unlocked, and returned to find their belongings removed or disturbed. In several cases, money was stolen, and in one case several thousand dollars worth of camera equipment was stolen from the vehicle. 

The vehicle stolen from lot 13 had also been left unlocked, and the keys had been in the center console. The theft has been reported to the Grand Rapids police department, and as of early January had not been recovered to the owner. 

Several similar crimes occured off-campus in the surrounding neighborhoods around this time as well. 

William Corner, director of campus safety, urges students to take greater precautions when leaving vehicles or belongings unattended by making sure that car doors are locked and any valuables are either taken out of it or stored in the trunk, rather than left where they are visible. Corner said, “We all have to work together for our community to be safe and that means if we see something that looks like it’s not right… give campus safety a call.” Corner recommended having the campus safety emergency number programmed into your phone, and to make use of the blue safety phones around campus. 

Campus safety’s 24-hour dispatch can be reached at 616-526-6452.