Rash of crimes strikes campus

Incidents up 22 percent over break this year There were approximately 100 crimes reported to University Police between December 22 and January 13. This figure is up 18 percent from the same period last year, and 14 percent from the year before. There were 21 reports of thefts from automobiles, 13 reports of assault or robbery, 22 reports of theft or burglary and four reports of assaults involving firearms. Automobile theft experienced the largest percentage increase, up nearly 300 percent from the four reported during last year's Winter Break. Cars with cellular phones were broken into the most often, according to University Police Sergeant Tom Messner. University Police suspect that the thefts may be part of an organized group. "It seems like there may be a cellular phone ring operating," he said, adding that University Police had broken up just such a ring last year, making five arrests. The crimes ranged from the serious to the bizarre. A car carrying a female Penn student was involved in a collision with a bus on the corner of 33rd and Spruce streets on January 11. Both the student and a passenger on the bus were treated for minor injuries and released, according to Messner. There was a bomb threat at the Wawa convenience store at 36th and Chestnut streets. It was a false alarm and business continued as usual, Messner said. But other area businesses were not as lucky. The holiday season started on a sour note for the owners and patrons of the Zheng Yong Quan Chinese restaurant at 42nd and Walnut streets, which was robbed of $250 by an armed suspect on Christmas Day. Boston Market restaurant at 39th and Chestnut streets was robbed of an undisclosed amount of money by a suspect carrying a gun in a plastic bag. And according to police reports, a fight had just spilled out of Billybob's onto 42nd and Spruce streets when an uninvolved third party pulled out a laser-sighted pistol, and aimed the pistol at one of the combatants. No one was injured in any of the incidents and there were no arrests, Messner said. There was also a report of ethnic intimidation in Graduate Tower A, where a student was hit by a snowball while waiting for the elevator. The suspect then shouted an ethnic slur at the student. There were several reports of harassment by students who had received threatening or unwanted phone calls.