Anna Pohoryles ‘19 put her wallet down in Upper Farinon to mark her seat before getting breakfast last Saturday morning. It contained her ATM card, her license, about $50 to $60 and some gift cards. When she came back less than five minutes later, the wallet was gone.
“At first I thought it was just me being forgetful,” Pohoryles said. “But on the bench [by the doors to exit Farinon] I saw my [wallet] sitting there. All of my cards were in a different order. Everything was in there except the cash and the Don Juan’s gift card.”
Pohoryles proceeded to go to public safety and file an investigation report. Hers is one of seven instances of theft reported to public safety in the last two weeks.
According to Associate Director of Lafayette College Public Safety Jeff Troxell, public safety is looking into the thefts, which are currently active investigations. They have increased patrols at Skillman Library, where many of the thefts reportedly occurred.
Troxell could not disclose specifics about how public safety’s investigations were being conducted. He also declined to comment when asked if security cameras have been set up in Skillman Library.
According to the crime log, the majority of the items stolen in Skillman have been wallets taken from unattended backpacks. Although her wallet was not taken at Skillman, Pohoryles is now cautious everywhere she goes.
“It was a wake up call,” Pohoryles said. “I was probably more surprised than anything, because you never hear of stuff like that happening [at Lafayette].”
Troxell stressed that students need to “secure their valuables” and “report suspicious activity immediately” to public safety if they witness a theft.
In addition to reported thefts, there have also been some unreported thefts on campus. Last weekend, multiple students posted on Facebook searching for lost and stolen items. Many of the posts claim the items were last seen at Campus Pizza, a popular nighttime hangout.
Kristen Cirincione ‘19 was one of the students who posted on Facebook claiming that her wallet and student ID were stolen out of her jacket at Campus Pizza last Saturday night.
“I had put my jacket on the side where a bunch of jackets were stacked, and [when I went back] I realized both pockets were open, and I noticed my wallet was gone,” Cirincione said.
Cirincione later found her wallet on the side of a road near Campus Pizza with her money and student ID missing.
There is a consensus amongst public safety and the victims of reported thefts that students need to be more mindful of where they put their possessions.
“I think it’s important that people realize that even though this is a safe campus and you’re not going to have something like this happen all the time, it’s important to be mindful that leaving your wallet out or leaving your phone out can be tempting for people looking for that kind of thing,” Pohoryles said.