Washington Week: Student Voices (O)

Thieves targeting cars with GPS
By Ben Worsley
The Diamondback (U. Maryland)
02/06/2008

(U-WIRE) COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Area thieves have been targeting cars they believe contain GPS systems, university police said.

Since Jan. 6, 10 GPS thefts have occurred in College Park, according to Capt. John Brandt of University Police's Crime Prevention Unit. A series of these thefts occurred in Lot 1B, while another string of thefts occurred on Tulane Drive near Adelphi Road, Brandt said.

In addition to the 10 thefts, other cars' windows have been broken because of the presence of suction cup rings, suction cups or mounts on the dashboards, signs that may indicate a GPS unit in the car, Brandt added. GPS, or Global Positioning System, can come with such mounts so they can be placed on dashboards for more convenient use.

According to Brandt, these thefts are becoming a problem not just in College Park, but across the country.

"There is an increase [in GPS thefts] nationwide, statewide, pretty much everywhere you go," he said.

In response to the recent incidents, "the first step is to spread awareness," Brandt said. An e-mail was sent to all students on Monday alerting them of the GPS thefts. The e-mail, prepared by Brandt, reminded students to secure or hide loose items, lock all doors and close all windows in their vehicles. Students with GPS units should also remove the suction cup mounts from their dashboards when they are not in their vehicles, Brandt said.

Some students are already taking steps to secure their cars, they said. Senior psychology major Laura Romanosky, who owns a TomTom, a type of portable GPS, said she usually keeps the unit in her purse or apartment and rarely stores it in her glove compartment.

"I was told not to mount it because thieves can see the ring from where the suction cup was and may break into your car to look for it," she said.

University Police are also taking a pro active approach by increasing their camera and patrol rounds, Brandt said. The campus is equipped with more than 250 cameras, and officers are stationed in certain areas to look out for any suspicious activity, he added.

At approximately 5:20 a.m. on Feb. 2, the campus cameras were used to spot men using flashlights to look inside cars on Tulane Drive. Although the men drove away, they were soon stopped by police, with one man arrested on charges of driving without a license and both denied further access to the campus. In their car, the registration of another vehicle was found that had had a GPS and iPhone stolen from it the previous day, Brandt said.

Despite those arrests, the number of GPS thefts has raised concerns among students.

Nick Lituchy, a sophomore bioengineering major, got a GPS over Thanksgiving break, and is now questioning keeping his car on the campus, he said.

"I feel safe parking [my car] on campus, but recently not as much," Lituchy said.

Romanosky echoed Lituchy's concerns.

"I generally feel safe parking in my driveway on Hartwick [Drive] or in friends' driveways," Romanosky said, "but that's about it."

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