A rash of 12 locker thefts took place inside of Pottruck Health and Fitness Center and the Hutchinson Gymnasium between Jan. 15 and Feb. 4.
The Division of Public Safety sent an advisory email notifying “members of the Penn community” of the locker thefts at 7:20 p.m. on Tuesday. Out of the seven Pottruck thefts, four thefts were from secured lockers. All five of the Hutchinson Gym locker thefts were from unsecured lockers.
Graduate medical student Adam Watson’s locker was broken into on Jan. 22. His iPhone and cash were stolen from his secured locker inside of the locker room at Pottruck. He had secured his locker with a black, three-ring Master Lock, a lock he said is commonly used inside of Pottruck. “I saw four of those kinds of lock on the ground floor, and in the locker room, I saw at least two or three more,” Watson said.
Watson knew that something was awry when he returned to his locker after a 45-minute workout to find that his lock was missing. “My guess would be that they’ve figured out how to break in to the locks themselves or they’re looking over people’s shoulders at the combination,” he said.
Watson filed a police report following the incident, yet was not able to recover his stolen property and no arrest has been made. He said that the Penn Police officer he spoke to told him that he had received multiple reports of this type of locker theft the day prior to Jan. 22. Watson attempted to use location apps, but his phone had either been immediately turned off or the SIM card had been removed.
When asked about the locker thefts, Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush said that Penn Police have spoken to all of the individuals who have had things stolen.
“We are doing an educational campaign to help people identify suspicious behavior. If you notice someone dilly-dallying at the locker, we want you to report them to security,” Rush said.
So far, no arrests have been made related to the locker thefts at Pottruck. DPS has posted signs there alerting members to these thefts and reminding them to secure their lockers. DPS reported making one arrest related to a locker theft at The Tse Sports Center at Hutchinson Gymnasium near the Palestra.
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