Larceny is the most common crime on Boston University’s campus, but has been diminishing the past two years, police officials said. However, many students said they are still cautious about leaving their belongings unattended.
“If we look at the time period between Sept. 1 and 16, there were 35 larcenies in 2011 and only 18 in 2012,” said BU Police Department Captain Robert Molloy. Larceny, personal property theft, is so common because it is a crime of opportunity, Molloy said. On college campuses, students often leave their bags unattended when going to the line to get food or at the library.
“I’m always pretty careful and keep my stuff with me,” said Amir Ali, a College of Arts and Sciences freshman. “Everyone just gets used to carrying things with them all the time in college.”
Since January of 2012, only 195 on-campus larcenies were reported to BUPD, 26 percent less than the 263 reported from January to September of 2011, Molloy said.
“I definitely see people leave their things out a lot,” said Julia Catalini, a junior in the School of Education. “If you’re only gone for a couple minutes and try to keep it in sight, I don’t see a problem with it.”
Catalini said even though she does not often leave her belongings unattended, she usually feels it is safe to do so in buildings on campus.
BUPD is pleased with the new bicycle racks installed in public areas because it makes it easier for officers to monitor the racks for suspicious activity, Molloy said.
BUPD’s Crime Prevention Program encourages students to register their valuable items such as laptops and bicycles with the police to deter theft and help return the stolen item if it is retrieved.
Northeastern University’s Annual Information Report for 2011–12 accounted 55 robberies and 18 burglaries in 2010.
“We publish annual reports to inform the students of problem areas that we have on campus,” said Greg Gauthier, a NU Police Department officer. “We’ve done some informational flyers about larcenies of bikes on campus.”
Tufts University Boston Campus Public Safety’s report for 2011–12 only accounted two burglaries and no other thefts for 2010. This is a drastic drop from 16 burglaries in 2009 and 25 in 2008.
The spokesman for Tufts could not be reached in time for comment.
Ali said he thinks BUPD has a strong presence on campus and that he feels safe.
“I’ve never had anything stolen from me on campus, but I’ve only been here two weeks,” he said.
Molloy said he suggests students do not leave bags unattended or to eat with friends so they can keep an eye on their bags.
Angelo Catanese, a CAS sophomore, said he has been more cautious since he had four iPods and a wallet stolen from his car in high school.
“Unless I’m gone for only 10 seconds, I try to keep my stuff with me,” he said.
CAS sophomore Logan Bernard said he has not seen many unattended belongings in dining halls or the library lately.
“Nothing has ever been stolen from me, but when I’m at the library I still try to put my laptop in my backpack if I leave the desk for a few minutes,” he said.
Molloy said larceny is a popular campus crime, but it is also prevalent everywhere else.
School of Management sophomore Ka Kiu Leung said he has never had anything stolen from him on campus. He said he leaves his backpack to save a table while he goes into lines at the dining halls or George Sherman Union.
“When I see the amount of backpacks left in the area, I feel better about leaving mine out,” he said.
Kaneta Zillur contributed to the reporting of this article.
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