Crimes against property see rise in August 2013

Crimes against property committed in the Penn Patrol Zone during August 2013 jumped from last year, but crimes against person remained relatively stable compared to crimes committed during August 2012.

Crimes against property, such as burglary and theft, jumped from 49 reports in August 2012 to 79 reports in August 2013. Burglaries rose from one report to 11 reports, building thefts from 20 reports to 31 reports and retail thefts from six reports to 14 reports.

Related: Fewer freshmen hospitalized during NSO

However, reports of crimes against persons, such as robberies and forcible sex offenses, remained low and showed no increasing pattern. There were nine reports of crimes against persons in both August 2012 and August 2013. Simple assaults — where there is no intent to do any other injury — dropped from five to zero, though the Division of Public Safety explained that many simple assaults are committed against health care workers or police officers and thus do not often affect random victims on the street.

Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush emphasized the importance of Operation Building Safe, a public awareness campaign intended to make people aware of how to prevent thefts and burglaries. She highlighted the importance of locking doors at all times, not propping apartment doors open and not leaving personal items unattended for any amount of time. “We try to target-harden our community,” she said.

In light of recent robberies, Deputy Chief of Investigations Michael Morrin took out ‘also’offered similar advice. He noted the importance of being aware of one’s surroundings and not making expensive personal items visible too often, especially cell phones. “Don’t be an easy target,” he said. “Criminals like easy targets.”

Related: Campus crime log discloses identity of minors

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.