Preventing Winter-Break Theft
With school about to break for the winter recess, the UW-Madison Police Department reminds parents and students to take a few steps to help reduce thefts. Crimes, including thefts, often occur when the reward to the criminal (such as obtaining your valuables), outweighs the risk or effort involved. During winter break, UW police officers are doing their part by increasing patrols around campus, but they need the campus community to help.
As parents, you can help keep your students’ belongings safe. Start by having your student bring valuable items such as iPods, laptops, and cameras home when he or she leaves campus. This removes the potential reward for a criminal, and it eliminates the opportunity for the item to be stolen. While it may seem obvious, reminding your student to lock his or her residence is helpful. In their excitement to return home, students may forget this easy and important step.
Recovering stolen items does not happen as often as we’d like, but it is almost impossible unless a student is able to provide the police an item’s serial number. Have your student keep a log of all of his/her valuable property. Include the item description, value, and serial numbers. This information helps the police to track and recover stolen property, and assists with any insurance claims.
The UW-Madison Police Department is always working to keep your student and his or her property safe. For more information, call the department at 608-264-COPS (2677) or email uwpolice@mhub.uwpd.wisc.edu.