Students returning to campus this week were greeted with a spree of vehicle and apartment break-ins that occurred during the three-week holiday.
Six Central Campus apartments and five cars were reported entered between Dec. 15 and Jan. 6 as burglars appeared to take advantage of the absence of most undergraduates from campus. Police have made one arrest in the break-ins and say they are comfortable with the level of crime during the break.
"Crooks tend to know when students are gone, just as much as students do, and try to take advantage of that," said Maj. Robert Dean of the Duke University Police Department. "We have put into practice certain patrol strategies that we do when [students] are away from campus, which include us going into dorms."
In one case, a student had both his car stolen and his apartment entered. The student reported that on the night of Dec. 22, someone stole his 1993 Toyota Camry from the parking lot at his 301 Swift Ave. apartment. The student also reported his apartment was entered the same night and that his keys and $3 from his wallet were taken. There was no forced entry to the apartment and the victim was at home, but heard and saw nothing.
Police have arrested a suspect in the case, but were not able to release the name Tuesday because the reports were still being filed.
The incident was not the only one reported at 301 Swift Ave.
A student reported that between Dec. 23 and Jan. 6, someone entered his secured apartment at that location and stole a large $10 kitchen knife from the dish drain in the sink. When he returned to his apartment Jan. 6, he found the deadbolt lock unsecured. There were no signs of forced entry.
Another student reported that early Dec. 22, while she was asleep, someone entered her apartment and stole her $1,500 blue and silver Gericom laptop computer, with "Web Boy" written on top, Dean said. She reported she is sure that both her doors were locked, and that around 4:30 a.m. she was awakened by the sound of someone in the apartment, but thought it was a neighbor downstairs entering his apartment.
Yet another student reported that her apartment was entered by an unknown subject between 4 and 4:30 a.m. Dec. 23. The student said the subject turned her bedroom light on and off twice. The student at first thought this was her roommate and so was not alarmed. Nothing was taken from the apartment and there were no signs of forced entry.
In other break-ins, a student reported that over the break, someone entered her secured 1914 Lewis St. apartment and stole her $3,000 Dell 7000 laptop computer and $250 AIWA stereo system, Dean said. Although there were no signs of forced entry to the front door nor to the patio door, the victim reported noticing the wooden stick that secures the patio door out of place when she entered the apartment.
A student telephoned DUPD Dec. 29 to report her credit card company had notified her about some unusual activity on her credit card. She reported she had left her card in her secured 302 Oregon St. apartment. Officers responded Dec. 29 and found the apartment unsecured and the credit card missing.
Meanwhile, East Campus was the site of a number of vehicle break-ins.
An officer first discovered a break-in Dec. 21, noting a student's vehicle parked at the rear of Bassett Dormitory with the $200 driver's side window broken and a pry mark on the door jam causing about $100 in damage. The officer locked all doors on the vehicle, but it is not known if anything was stolen.
At 12:20 p.m. Dec. 30, an employee reported finding two students' vehicles, parked at the rear of Pegram Dormitory, had been broken into. One vehicle's driver's side window was broken, causing $200 in damage, and the $200 stereo stolen. The second vehicle had the driver's side window broken, causing $200 in damage, but nothing appeared to have been stolen. A third student's vehicle in the lot was discovered by an officer with the passenger's side window broken, causing $200 in damage and the $500 AIWA stereo system stolen.
Dean said that the cases are believed to be related.
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