At Lafayette College’s Simon’s Market, theft was unchecked.
Until recently, the on-campus convenience store — a 24/7 Amazon “Just Walk Out” market — was unmanned and unsupervised; even the dozens of cameras jutting out of the ceiling track little but customer hands and product movement.
But after a Halloween night power outage saw a noticeable amount of product go missing, Public Safety began to investigate. Within the week, the department had installed Ring cameras facing the entry gates, and on Nov. 3 alone, it recorded 76 incidents of Simon’s retail theft and nine counts of criminal conspiracy.
“It’s multiple people, multiple products, through a period of time,” said Director of Public Safety Jeff Troxell. He could not disclose a specific value or amount of items lost in time for publication, though the investigation is still ongoing.
“I think on the original install, there were some security measures in there, but most of those were infrared sensors that they monitor the product with,” Troxell said.
Though Simon’s is littered with cameras — one every few feet — the technology is not designed to recognize or collect biometric data, according to Amazon’s website. The shop “detects when your hand interacts with a product on the shelf” through the sensors.
Assistant Vice President of Operations Geoff Labe declined to comment on the nature of Simon’s technology due to the ongoing investigations.
The newly-installed Ring cameras now allow Public Safety to ensure students are paying for the items they grab, preventing what Troxell said are some of the most common methods of theft.
In one method, thieves “tailgate” paying customers, slipping into the store behind them so that items they pick up are charged to the other person’s account. Other students simply entered through the exit gate to avoid a charge, according to Troxell.
He noted that there are plans for permanent CCTV installation soon.
Public Safety detectives and additional officers have called in many students — either witnesses or alleged thieves — for questioning.
“We’re trying to put the pieces together, what actually went down,” Troxell said.
One student, who wished to remain anonymous, citing concerns about the ongoing investigation, said that he received one such email from Public Safety.
“They said they had seen me on video taking things from Simon’s,” the student said. “They were asking me several questions about why said things happened, and just trying to understand if other people had been doing it and the frequency these things had been happening.”
The student claims that his questioners, Chief of Police Jim Meyer and Detective Keith O’Hay, told him that his case would be referred to the Office of Student Conduct, though the possibility of criminal charges was “off the table.”
Braeden Barnett, the college’s director of student conduct and restorative practices, could not be reached for comment.
Multiple students who self-identified as having stolen from Simon’s prior to the camera’s installation confirmed that they had not been contacted by Public Safety.
James P • Nov 16, 2025 at 11:23 pm
I’m picking up from this story that a culture of the criminal stealing ran amuck at Simon’s Market. Incredibly, the College had a mistaken idea of trust and installed an unmanned checkout system that allowed theft to take place unchecked. Apparently, many participated in these thefts. Even after cameras were installed, the thefts continued. Those responsible should face criminal charges as well as severe campus discipline measures, if they were students. There is nothing more important on a college campus than honesty whether in the classroom, in the dorms and houses where students live or in the college shops. Decades ago a college basketball star, who later went on to become an NBA ref, before any such thing as security cameras, was caught stealing books from the college bookstore and was dismissed from the college.