Brandon Lieb stepped out of his room on the fourth floor of Haven Residence Hall for barely five minutes to brush his teeth before going to class Tuesday.

‘He came back, and he noticed a bunch of books on my floor,’ said Fabien Levy, Lieb’s roommate and junior broadcast journalism and political science major. Lieb, a senior finance and IST major, didn’t think anything of the mess, but when Levy called later and asked him to check something on the answering machine, Lieb noticed Levy’s computer was missing.

‘He asked me if I had taken my laptop to class, and I knew something was wrong,’ Levy said.

The pair’s room had been burglarized during Lieb’s trip to the bathroom. In addition to the stolen laptop, about half the wires to both Lieb’s laptop and PlayStation 2 were disconnected from the room’s sockets.

‘It looked like [the burglar] tried to steal [them] but then panicked and left,’ Levy said. The burglar also took Lieb’s backpack, which Levy believes was used to conceal the 3-month-old laptop.

Haven residents have been targeted in a series of burglaries, including three that occurred Oct. 4. The Department of Public Safety and the Syracuse Police Department are conducting a joint investigation in an attempt to catch whoever is committing the burglaries.

In response to the burglaries, Public Safety is stationing an officer at the entrance of Haven. Also, Public Safety held a meeting Thursday night in the Haven lounge for concerned residents.

The Haven burglaries are unique because the same person is committing the crimes, said Public Safety Senior Lt. Grant Williams. While no one has caught him in action, Haven residents have given the same description to officers when calling to report suspicious people.

Lt. Michael Lemm, a Public Safety investigator, described him as a white ‘scruffy-looking male’ in his early 20s.

Despite his younger appearance, Public Safety has reason to believe the suspect is not an SU student. Levy said his laptop was returned to him after police discovered it at a local pawn shop. Although Williams had not heard of the discovery, he believes that if the suspect is selling stolen property, it is unlikely he is a student.

‘Students typically don’t know where to pawn things,’ Williams said.

Officers say they are having a tough time getting solid evidence. In Levy’s case, detectives dusted for fingerprints, but because the university’s desks are coated with a dotty finish to minimize dust, they found none.

The burglaries have all been committed during the day, which adds to the problems, Williams said.

‘People have other things on their minds during the day,’ Williams said. ‘The residence halls are a busy place, and people tend to blend in.’

Some Haven residents say it is especially a concern for their dorm because non-Haven residents frequent the dorm throughout the day.

‘It’s hard because with the dining hall, so many people are going in and out,’ said Caitlin DeClercq, a sophomore marketing major who lives on the fourth floor.

According to students of the floor, the person’s most recent burglary wasn’t his last attempt.

At about 3 p.m. Wednesday, several doors down from Levy’s room, a stranger opened the door to a female student’s room and promptly left, Levy said. While nothing was taken, the girl was shaken and called Public Safety immediately, Levy added.

Williams stressed that Public Safety can only do so much and is asking for students’ help in protecting their belongings.

‘I know it’s old-fashioned for students to lock their doors, but it’s something every student should do when they leave their room,’ Williams said. ‘Students are loving people and want to be helpful when they open the door for other people. If you do [let other students in], just be cognizant of who is walking in.’

‘We lock our doors now slightly for security reasons, but more because we don’t want some random guy walking in on us,’ said Chloe Morgan, a sophomore fashion design major who shares a floor with Levy and Lieb.

After the female student’s encounter, Williams is thankful the suspect doesn’t seem to pose a physical threat to students.

‘He’s not going to injure you or push you for your laptop,’ Williams said.

He still stressed that there is much at stake for the SU community.

‘We’re more concerned about easing the fears of residents in Haven,’ Williams said. ‘Fabien will get another laptop, the other students will get new stuff, but the fear of crime is worse than what actually happened.’

For some students, though, the damage might already be done.

‘Now I lock my door whenever I go to the bathroom,’ DeClercq said. ‘It’s ridiculous.’

Published on October 16, 2003 at 12:00 pm