Lock doors, keep valuables secure to avoid petty theft

---

Tweet

Walking at night and storing valuables in a dorm room don’t have to be the end of the world.

Although the most prevalent crime in East Lansing during 2007 was theft, a person can avoid being a victim just by being alert and aware of his or her belongings and surroundings, East Lansing police Capt. Kim Johnson said.

Johnson said the easiest way to keep belongings in your possession is to think about what you are doing with them: If you’re in a bar, carry cash in a pocket rather than in a purse, he said. If you’re leaving your car, keep the doors locked and valuables out of sight, Johnson said.

“Bad guys and bad girls — they look for opportunities,” he said.

“Unlocked doors — they’re going to come in and take a CD player.”

For students who live in apartments, it is important to keep belongings out of sight and take any precaution you can to make it harder to find a victim, Johnson said.

“You have to think that you don’t want to be a victim so you take precautions,” he said.

“Lock your doors, lock your windows, keep things out of view. … (It’s) the stuff we’ve been preaching forever.”

Lyman Briggs sophomore Erica Frogner said although she has never been a victim of crime in the MSU community, she’s witnessed people attempting a theft.

“Last year, people were walking down the floors, scoping out rooms to see if they wanted to steal stuff,” she said.

Frogner said police later told her she should have called them right away, to allow them to more quickly intercept a crime.

MSU police Sgt. Florene McGlothian-Taylor said students should immediately report any behavior that looks suspicious. People on- and off-campus should make use of the peepholes in their doors and keep doors locked at all times, even in locked buildings, she said.

Sliding glass doors also should be secured, and ground level residents should be sure to keep windows locked and blinds down so no one can see inside, McGlothian-Taylor said.

Urban and regional planning junior Claire Wilke, who lives on campus, said she hasn’t experienced a theft because she always keeps her door locked when she’s not around.

“I’ve heard a lot of stuff that’s happened, but I’ve stayed safe,” she said.

---