Phones stolen at Spring Fling fraternity party

On the Friday of Spring Fling, four students had their phones taken at a fraternity party.

The students reported to Penn Police that their phones went missing at the Sigma Alpha Mu — also known as “Sammy” — fraternity house at 38th and Walnut streets around 1 a.m., according to the Division of Public Safety. Penn Police is currently investigating the thefts. DPS said the phones were unattended at the time of the thefts.

However, College sophomore Natalie Meeder, one of the victimized party guests, said her phone was not unattended at the time of the theft. She said she had her phone in her purse, which she was wearing, although it was not zipped entirely closed at the time.

Meeder recalled feeling something pull on her purse as she passed through the crowd at the door on her way out of the party. When she checked for her phone once outside, she said it was gone.

Meeder tried to track her phone via a GPS locating app when she realized that it was missing. She found that her phone had already been turned offline by the time that she searched for it. Meeder said the other students who had their phones taken at the party also tried to track them after the thefts, and all found that their phones had been turned off.

Meeder does not recall seeing any suspicious guests or behavior. “Whoever was pickpocketing people knew what they were doing,” Meeder said.

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