Police tackle bicycle thefts

New measures have recently been introduced to decrease the growing number of incidents. With Penn's violent crime numbers tumbling in the past few years, police have seized the opportunity to concentrate on more basic quality-of-life issues. Heading the list of these nagging issues is bike theft, which has experienced a steady increase over the past few months. According to official University Police statistics, bike thefts between September 1 and December 1 are up to 55, a nearly 20 percent increase over the same period a year ago. University Police began a "tactical operation plan" in mid-October to target the problem and teamed up with the Philadelphia Police Department a few weeks later. Together, the two groups have incorporated several different techniques to catch culprits in the act. "We want the criminals to understand that no crime is too small for us," University Police Chief Maureen Rush said. As part of the program, police continually gather statistics to determine which sections of campus are most prone to bike thefts, and then deploy plainclothes officers to patrol the highlighted areas. Already, they have seen a fair amount of success. On October 26 at around 3:30 a.m., police spotted two men lurking near several bike racks outside the high rises. The men were placed under surveillance by police and were arrested after allegedly breaking a lock and trying to pedal off with a bike. Rush explained that one of Public Safety's security cameras at the corner of 40th and Locust streets proved instrumental in the arrest, adding that the growing web of surveillance technology on campus will likely be of service in the future. "The cameras enhance our officers' ability to stay low-profile," Rush said. Police made similar arrests in early November in connection with bike thefts outside of the Wawa at 3744 Spruce Street and another theft near the corner of 34th Street and Lancaster Avenue. But despite the recent apprehensions, Rush said the thefts on and around campus could be the work of organized, multi-tier operations, making the ultimate police goal to find the "brainchild" behind the scenes. "We're not satisfied with just one or two culprits here," Rush said. "We want to cut it out at the root." University Police Det. Supervisor Bill Danks said the presence of an undercover operation also works as a deterrent once word hits the streets. "We're letting people that are interested in this kind of thing know we're watching them," Danks said. "They know we're watching them, but they don't know where we are." In the meantime, police recommend that owners register their bikes and always secure them when leaving them unattended. According to police, U-shaped locks are the most effective. Rush noted that although bike thefts seldom involve violence, the crime certainly takes a toll on its victims in other ways and can make neighborhoods feel more unsafe than they actually are. "It's unsettling if anything is stolen from someone," Rush said. "This is not a good experience for people, whether it's a $50 bike or a $5,000 bike. It's not a good feeling." And in a pedestrian community where bikes serve as an essential means of transportation, Rush said this particular type of theft can be especially frustrating for the victims. "You may as well steal their car," Rush noted.

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