November, year see slight increases in crime

Crime in the Penn Patrol zone increased slightly in 2007 compared to last year, with the biggest jump occurring in thefts.

Total crime increased year-to-date by six percent, according to the Division of Public Safety.

Statistics for the month of November show a 20-percent increase in total crime compared to the same month last year.

Though the number of general thefts thus far this year has increased by 15 percent, several crimes, including violent offenses, showed declines.

The number of year-to-date bike and auto thefts, robberies, burglaries and aggravated assaults have all decreased slightly since last year.

Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush said she was most satisfied with declines in the number of robberies.

"We are pleased to see that the number of robberies that occurred within the Penn Patrol zone in both November and the year-to-date has decreased," Rush said.

Robberies for the year thus far dropped from 69 in 2006 to 67 this year.

The number of burglaries in November increased to 18 this year from 10 last year, but the string of break-ins in Harnwell College House over Thanksgiving break composed a majority of these incidents.

Rush said DPS is continuing to focus on decreasing the number of overall thefts, especially preventable thefts involving unattended or unsecured items.

She said DPS will launch a campaign in the spring in conjunction with student organizations that will seek to "aggressively address this issue and further educate the community that safety is a shared responsibility."

A summary of crime statistics in November:

- Bike thefts more than tripled since last year from five to 17.

- The number of robberies decreased to five this year from 12 last November.

- There have been no auto thefts this month, compared to three last year.

- General thefts increased slightly to 46, up from 42 in 2006.

- Burglaries nearly doubled from 10 to 18.

- The number of simple assaults remained steady at two.

- Aggravated assaults increased from one last November to two this year.

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