The Daily Pennsylvanian :: Harnwell Thefts | 10 counts for junior in dorm burglaries

Wharton junior Jason Myers was arrested Thursday for 10 burglaries committed inside Harnwell College House over Thanksgiving break.

Between Nov. 21 and Nov. 26, Myers, then a Harnwell resident, allegedly stole items from 10 different dorm rooms on various floors of the college house. He stole only from rooms that were left unlocked, taking mostly electronics.

Myers, who is no longer living in Harnwell, has confessed to the burglaries. He was charged with 10 counts of criminal trespass, burglary, theft and receiving stolen property and has been released after posting $5,000 bail.

Stolen items included Xboxes, iPods, Playstations, game controllers, Gameboys, CDs and DVDs.

In their investigation, Penn Police detectives, with the help of Harnwell Dean Suhnne Ahn, interviewed all the victims, some of whom said they had noticed someone going in and out of rooms on their halls. After further investigation, police identified the suspect, obtained a search warrant and conducted a search of Myers' apartment, leading to his arrest.

Myers had allegedly taken much of the loot to his home in New York City over Thanksgiving. When his mother discovered the charges, she released those items to Penn detectives, Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush said.

Rush said most, if not all, of the stolen belongings have been recovered, and would be returned to their original owners starting today.

College sophomore Frank Chinga, who had his DVDs, CDs, and iPhone stolen, said he and many other victims were pleased with the outcome and speed of the investigation.

"I was pretty impressed by how quickly they were able to find whoever stole our stuff," he said, adding that he was shocked at how soon his belongings would be returned.

Chinga added that the thefts in the building have not changed his opinion of the high-rise, saying, "This kind of thing could have happened in any other college house. I'm just glad that we have the kind of community here where everyone tries to look out for each other after such things happen."

Myers' preliminary hearing is scheduled for Dec. 10.

University disciplinary measures are confidential, and it is unclear whether Myers will continue his studies at Penn.

The Philadelphia Police Public Affairs division could not be reached over the weekend to provide a photograph of Myers.

Editors note: All 10 counts of criminal trespass, burglary, theft and receiving stolen property were expunged from Myers' record on Jan. 9, 2009.

Comments (26)

Myers: come steal some of my shit and see what happens to you, you little bitch.

Yet another reason to have PennCard swipe locks for the student rooms.

is this the same jason myers that won the "Mr. Penn" bodybuilding title this fall? DP article (look at photo on right): http://media.www.dailypennsylvanian.com/media/storage/paper882/news/2007/11/07/Sports/Mr.And.Ms.Penn.2007.Carlin.Flexes.And.Hams.Her.Way.To.Second.Title-3084163.shtml

Great job, admissions committee...Let's see, this criminal was a junior. I know a A student with great SATs that was rejected from Wharton; she would have been a junior.

that guy was the winner of mister penn this year. That's crazy. I tell you, the bodybuilding community at Penn is in general a community of petty thieves and criminals.

This guy is a junior - somebody had to realize that he was a theif - why does Penn protect so many people who just don't belong here? what sort of screening is done at admissions? who is protected the rest of us? what kind of grades did he have?

[QUOTE id="2b3258cd-fc7a-47c4-8f12-4dc2cfe311dd"]that guy was the winner of mister penn this year. That's crazy. I tell you, the bodybuilding community at Penn is in general a community of petty thieves and criminals.[/QUOTE] That is an outrageous statement. Where do you come up with that drawing from one isolated example?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGwYfHFPGHE&feature;=related

Yes, let's screen out all potential thieves. and illegal drug users. and underage drinkers. and people who become CFO's who later imbezzle from their company. All we need is a mind-reading, future-telling machine... the University should stop protecting these people and develop this technology immediately.

I don't understand the people posting on here that Penn should have known he was a thief and therefore not admitted him, or kicked him out sooner...nothing in the article suggests that he had a criminal record, juvenile or otherwise, before he applied to the school, or that he engaged in proven criminal activity before this specific rash of thefts. I would also like to point everyone to this sentence: "He stole only from rooms that were left unlocked." HELLO? People are still leaving their dorms unlocked? And over a break, no less? And you're supposed to be so much smarter than any other classes of students that ever went to that school? SHEESH!

I worked at Penn for 4 years while in high school, before attending in 2002 and graduating 2006. If there is one thing that is a constant theme among students/victims of crime at Penn, it's that people continue to leave their doors unlocked. How many times this year have we heard of someone just strolling in through an unlocked door? Year after year it's the same old thing. Something so simple, such a simple deterrent, lock your door! Is it that inconvenient to have to use your key? Perhaps too many fellow students came from areas in which locking one's doors wasn't an issue. Sadly I'm convinced as well that the biggest thieves in west philly are Penn students.

[QUOTE id="9c991bc8-1796-43cd-b062-ca258a942c8d"] "imbezzle" [/QUOTE] lolz

[QUOTE id="2b3258cd-fc7a-47c4-8f12-4dc2cfe311dd"]that guy was the winner of mister penn this year. That's crazy. I tell you, the bodybuilding community at Penn is in general a community of petty thieves and criminals.[/QUOTE] Be careful with what you say. If you had bothered to see who the other Jason Myers is, you would have found out that this other guy is a SENIOR so it can't be the same person as the Wharton Junior thief.

how did he do in classes? I am sure that people who knew him knew that he was up to something - why did we have to wait to have our things stolen? I bet he will be back in another dorm soon

Maybe Myers' theme song should be "Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For."

Mike Penn stop being such a Joo. What the hell do grades have to do with anythere here? You are retarded. He obviously waited til the break to steal things cause it's much easier during the break than where there are tons of students around. What the hell kind of question is that. It's like asking why do people vandalize homes when nobody is home? Penn protects people who have $$$. Admissions lets people in who have $$$. That's how the world works.

excuse me, past student - are you antisemitic and a bad speller? I just am saying that some people who end up in classes are not really all that smart - but here to make admission and other people feel better - so after classes get too hard - they decide to steal

What is that supposed to mean? You certainly would not dare to make racist comments while criticizing someone else for being Anti-Semitic... And if your comments are not aimed at affirmative action, you have still made a gross and inappropriate generalization. I highly doubt that everyone who finds this school difficult turns to stealing... [QUOTE id="fb5b93f8-f766-49dc-a65a-a2cc73be02ac"]excuse me, past student - are you antisemitic and a bad speller? I just am saying that some people who end up in classes are not really all that smart - but here to make admission and other people feel better - so after classes get too hard - they decide to steal[/QUOTE]

who said anything about race or affirmative action - why do you make such assumptions? besides - lets keep this focussed on the thief

I like to poop. So i went on pooping.

[QUOTE id="4f32a91d-6f69-4d85-b2ae-1b6de64391a6"]Great job, admissions committee...Let's see, this criminal was a junior. I know a A student with great SATs that was rejected from Wharton; she would have been a junior.[/QUOTE].....like myers wrote "I'm a thief and will be stealing merchandise over Thanksgiving of my junior year". moron

[QUOTE id="15086d48-83ce-4a01-8abf-7c6ab8546d45"]Myers: come steal some of my shit and see what happens to you, you little bitch.[/QUOTE] hahahahaha.... i think jason myers would whoop ur ass....

[QUOTE id="2b3258cd-fc7a-47c4-8f12-4dc2cfe311dd"]that guy was the winner of mister penn this year. That's crazy. I tell you, the bodybuilding community at Penn is in general a community of petty thieves and criminals.[/QUOTE] you guys are fools... ur making a generalization about a whole group of people... a group of people who are generally stronger than the rest of the world....

At least they weren't panties...

I suspected it wasn't a student, since this pretty much demolishes Myers's academic career. I would have liked to hear what his motive was. I'm pretty sure it's difficult to liquidate the kind of stuff he stole�? and why did he let his mom see it? Furthermore, he wasn't very careful if there were multiple eye witnesses to testify against him. That kind of maniac, unscrupulous greed is exactly what Wharton needs�? let's put him in the Huntsman program, no? It surprises me that both Myers and Wang were so sloppy; if they had sought fewer targets, done surveylance for a time when no one would be watching, and fabricated alibis (by bribing people, etc), they would have gotten away with it. (The classic serial killer starts off small to gain experience and courage, and only goes on to bigger things in degrees). But they are not scientific criminals�? they are obviously just troubled boys. Maybe there is something at Penn that makes people crazy? Administrators should profile for people like this and put them on the football team (like the Waterboy) or in Wharton. There are plenty of legal ways to steal and violate people: Penn should spread awareness of these opportunities.