E.L. police warn students of spring break burglaries

As students leave East Lansing for sunny, warm beaches, police are gearing up to make sure the items they leave behind are protected.

Wibert

East Lansing police Chief Tom Wibert said theft and home invasion typically spike during spring break, mainly because of the mass exodus of students from town. He said crimes may not be reported until students return, but it’s fairly obvious when they occur.

“I’ve worked here for a long time,” Wibert said. “Those days that students come back, we’ll have several reports of incidents when they find that their places have been broken into.”

Wibert said spring break is unlike other breaks in the school year, such as between the fall and spring semesters, when some students stay in town. Spring break represents a situation where many people leave town for a week to get away from the pressures of school, leaving homes vulnerable to burglary.

T.J. Rankin, a secondary education junior, said he’s worried about how protected his apartment will be over break. Rankin said his apartment was burglarized in September. A laptop and hundreds of dollars were stolen while he and his brother slept.

“Anyone who is rational would be worried about being broken into,” he said.

Rankin stressed the importance of taking simple measures to protect apartments and houses while out of town. He said he might not have been robbed if his patio door had been locked at the time of the burglary.

“We didn’t have a lock on the patio, but we got one installed so it doesn’t happen again,” Rankin said.

Students living off campus aren’t the only ones who should take measures to avoid becoming victims of crime while they’re away.

Director of Residence Life Paul Goldblatt said he’s confident in the security of MSU residence halls, but the absence of students from campus can present the opportunity for thieves to strike.

“When you have less people in the hall during break, other people think it’s a great time to get in,” he said.

“They can try and find an unlocked door or break into certain rooms where they know something is.”

Goldblatt said the best way to keep thieves from taking valuables is to take them
home with you. He said small items, such as iPods and laptops, often are targets for potential burglars.

“Thieves aren’t taking a 50-inch plasma TV out of a residence hall,” he said. “If something is that small, and that valuable, just take it with you.”

Wibert said potential criminals also can be discouraged by the appearance that someone is home in a house or apartment. He suggested students have a neighbor pick up mail or newspapers that may accumulate, if possible.

“A lot of the times, it’ll snow and you can tell who’s gone by just by the tracks in the snow,” he said.

“If a neighbor is staying behind, they could take care of shoveling the walk and making the house look like it’s lived-in.”

Staff writer Kate Jacobson contributed to this report.