Due to the recent damages in Centennial and Flores halls, vandalism on university property is a concern to resident students and the university police department.

Actions from Residence Life and the police are in progress to find out the individual or individuals responsible for the damages. Mark Center, director of Residence Life, said, “we have been working closely with the university police department to identify (the) suspect(s) responsible for the damages.”

The damages range from destroying new televisions, slicing the sofas in the lounge areas to damaging the laundry room, according to Center. Resident students from Centennial Hall were affected most by the damages, leaving them without the use of washers and dryers.

Students were going to be charged for the damages and the amount was to be taken from the $100 housing security deposit, but Dr. David Estes, executive vice president, waived the charges.

AJ Sandoval III, chief of police, said that these types of incidents tend to happen the last two weeks of school, but that this was the “first time in the five years” that he has been here that school property was damaged.

“A lot of it was happening when RAs (resident assistants) weren’t on duty between 2 (a.m.) and 3 a.m.,” said Marylee Aguinaga, RA for Flores Hall.

Resident students were also been disrupted by false fire alarms in Centennial and Providence halls during different hours of the day. To be able to help with this problem, Sandoval said that the university police “got together with physical plant to order covers for the fire alarms.”

According to Sandoval, “The people causing this vandalism are residents themselves.”

The university police department has taken certain steps to ensure the security of residents. “We have increased patrols,” said Sandoval. An exact number of patrols was not provided. Also, officers are posted in designated areas that provide the maximum observational points around campus. 

In response to the tragedy that occurred May 6 with the burning of the Main Building, all residence halls have 24-hour security guards who “patrol and do rounds every 30 minutes,” said Aguinaga. “There’s talk about placing cameras in residence halls,” she added.

In addition, resident students received a notice from campus police that provides information on how to report crimes. The notice also includes what the charges are for every act such as false fire alarms, criminal mischief and reckless damage.

If students know any information that could lead university police to the individual or individuals responsible for the damages, they should use the “Silent Witness” program which is anonymous. Sandoval encourages students to utilize the program and hopes that someone will step forward.

Sandoval said, “When things like this come up we are very concerned and especially for those that live here.”