No arrests have been made in a theft that occurred the afternoon of Jan. 9 in the University Center, according to Patrick Linfante, assistant vice president and director of Public Safety.
A Pirate Alert was sent Jan. 10 along with a photo of the suspect, who allegedly took an iPod from a table and a wallet from an unattended purse in an office on the second floor of the University Center.
Security cameras captured images of the suspect who entered and left campus by walking through the Ward gate. The purse that the iPod was taken from was later recovered in a bathroom in Alfieri Hall, according to the alert.
"Each incident is different and photos are not always available," Linfante said. "The decision to use a photo, if available, will depend on the incident. The photo is of a person of interest and was included in this incident to hopefully help us identify him."
The suspect spent approximately 20 minutes on campus, according to Linfante. There is no suspicion that the suspect was familiar with the campus prior to arriving, or that he tried to enter any building before entering the UCenter, Linfante said.
Public Safety believes the suspect was in the UCenter for approximately 10 minutes and left immediately after he committed the theft.
No other updates or further information is available at this time, according to Linfante.
The suspect is described as a middle-aged black male, wearing a dark colored winter jacket with a fur lined hood, blue jeans and a white scarf. He has a mustache and a slight beard, according to the alert.
"Public Safety would like to remind community members that thefts are crimes of opportunity," Linfante said. "Therefore it is important that each of us safeguards our property by never leaving it lying about unattended, locking our doors when leaving our residence hall rooms, locking our desks and offices at the end of the workday."
Community members can report suspicious persons immediately to Public Safety by calling 973-761-9300 or by utilizing any of the campus blue light emergency phones.
Charlotte Lewis can be reached at charlotte.lewis@student.shu.edu.
