Certain stores around campus are more popular among thieves

Some stores and restaurants on campus are more attractive than others, but not necessarily in a good way.

Though the Division of Public Safety has reported an overall decrease in theft over the past year, several retail and restaurants in the Penn Patrol Zone are “hotspots” when it comes to theft.

According to Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush, retail theft tends to center around the two CVS locations on campus, American Apparel and Urban Outfitters.

View Retail theft since Oct. 3rd in a larger map

Theft of unattended items is particularly common in local cafes Cosi and Saxbys Coffee.

Several factors may contribute to making these stores and restaurants prime locations for theft.

American Apparel at 37th and Walnut streets, a store that consistently sees cases of theft from week to week, reported four cases between Oct. 3 and Nov. 6. Rush explained that the store attracts many female customers who sometimes cannot afford the products, so instead of paying for them, they simply take them.

American Apparel store manager Chris Cheshire said, “Of all the products that are taken, about 95 percent of them are women’s.”

According to Cheshire, the store layout might also condone theft of women’s apparel. “There are two women’s sections in the store where our cameras don’t cover very well,” he said.

Cheshire added that the store’s expanded back section has also become problematic because customers are less conspicuous in that area. He said that Urban Outfitters has a similar problem because the store is so big it is hard to keep track of all the customers.

Urban Outfitters at 36th and Sansom streets has seen two cases of theft between Oct. 3 and Nov. 6. A store manager was unable to provide comment due to company policy.

Thieves in the CVS locations on 34th and 39th and Walnut streets, however, may have different motives.

Collectively, these two locations have reported three cases of theft between in the time period previously mentioned. Two of the incidents involved items that added to over $50 in value, according to crime logs.

According to a store manager at the CVS on 34th and Walnut Street, who did not disclose her name due to company policy, said brand name body wash, shampoo and pain relief medications are typically taken.

“[Thieves] take these products because they can resell them on the street or at flee markets. They sometimes take 10 or 15 bottles of pain relief medication at a time,” she said.

Store manager Evette Junious at the CVS on 39th and Walnut streets said she sees the same cases at her store, and added that baby formula is another popular item among thieves.

Rush guesses that theft of items such as shampoo, razors and baby formula can be attributed to the downturn of the economy.

Some store managers say it is difficult to handle incidents of theft, especially when they cannot prove the suspect has actually taken anything.

According to Cosi Assistant Manager Coult Allgrove, “If someone has made a purchase, I can’t ask them to leave if they just look suspicious.”

Cosi has reported two cases of unattended theft in the past month.

Junious explained that CVS employees or a manager typically addresses the thief if they know he or she is stealing, and in the event of more extreme disturbances, they call Penn Police.

In order to combat theft and other crime, policing in every retail location and restaurant on campus begins with a patrol logbook that is placed at the entrances. At varying hours during the day, Penn Police sign into the book and do routine walk-throughs.

The randomness of these patrols ensures that potential thieves will never know when a Penn Police officer will come in.

Rush said DPS does in fact do some extra policing in the “hotspot” locations, but the details of their routines cannot be disclosed for security purposes.

As for the reasoning behind these particular locations being prone to theft, Rush said “there is no rhyme or reason to retail theft.”

“The good news is there is not a huge trend in retail or unattended theft going up, and we hope to continue that trend,” she added.

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