DPS investigates parking garage thefts and vandalism

The Division of Public Safety is investigating leads on numerous cases of theft and vandalism last month in a University parking garage.

In September, 17 cars were broken into and vandalized in Garage 51, located at the intersection of University Avenue and Civic Center Boulevard, according to DPS spokeswoman Stef Cella. Ten of the 17 cars were broken into on Sept. 6, with the remaining seven vandalized during the early morning hours on Sept. 26, Deputy Chief of Investigations Michael Morrin said.

Most of the cars affected belonged to employees of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania. Only those that have parking permits for Garage 51 are allowed to park their cars in the lot, Cella said.

Morrin said the thefts and vandalism on Sept. 26 happened overnight and all at one time. HUP and CHOP security left notes on the vandalized cars instructing their owners to contact Penn Police.

Although initially DPS considered the first incident a vandalism case, Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush explained the need for further investigation as “people subsequently came in little by little to say things were stolen.”

Morrin explained that DPS had “some physical evidence in the form of fingerprints” but is currently waiting for results from the Latent Print Unit of the Philadelphia Police Department to identify a suspect.

DPS is currently working with the HUP and CHOP security departments to increase surveillance of the parking lot in their ongoing investigation of the active case.

In addition, DPS plans to launch additional security outreach to emphasize the importance of not leaving property in plain view within a car.

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