Murder suspect linked to rape

This summer again proved to be a relatively quiet one for the Penn Police Department, as crimes on and around campus continued to decline sharply. Significant decreases in thefts and aggrivated assaults highlighted the statistics, which were taken from the University Police log book. The figures include crimes reported between June 1 and August 31. While Penn Police tallied 257 summer thefts last year and 375 the year before, only 177 thefts were recorded this summer. Among this summer's total were 24 bike thefts -- a 50 percent decline from one year ago. The number of aggrivated assaults, which include stabbings, gunshot wounds and serious beatings, fell from 13 last year to just 4 this summer. Automobile theft was the only area of serious crime to experience an increase, creeping up one to 15. ROBBERIES AND BURGLARIES BLAH BLAH BLAH. University Police said they were pleased with the steadily declining crime rate, and that they hope the downward trend of crime in University City this summer will spill over into the upcoming school year. Detective Supervisor Pat Brennan explained that a growing presence of police and security strongly contributed to the reduction of crime on and around campus during the summer months. "Crime has been steadily decreasing because of the increasing patrol," Brennan said. Brennan noted that the Penn Police force grew in size this summer, from 93 to 104. She also explained that the 250 unarmed security officers that patrol campus -- like Spectaguards and University City District Safety Ambassadors -- play a major role in crime prevention and apprehension, creating an "influx of uniforms" that act "like our eyes and ears." In June, while working with the Philadelphia Police Department's 18th District, Penn Police apprehended 29-year-old Casey Brunson in connection with a string of summer burglaries starting in mid-May. Noticing a pattern in the crimes -- always at night and always on 41st Street -- Penn Police deployed plainclothes officers who caught Brunson red-handed on the morning of June 9. During the early hours of July 25, two Penn students were robbed at gunpoint near the corner of 41st and Pine streets. One of the two suspects, described as a black male in his late teens or early 20s, flashed a handgun and proceeded to take a cellular phone and about $70 in cash. University Police are currently investigating the case. And just five days later on July 30, Penn Police apprehended three unidentified male suspects in connection with the shooting death of 30-year-old Michael Rainey on the 4400 block of Sansom Street. An investigation concluded that Rainey was a bystander between two groups that were firing gunshots at each other from across the street, according to the Philadelphia Police Department Office of Public Affairs. The three suspects have been charged with homicide and are currently awaiting trial.