BPD reports more than 60 burglaries during break

When IU senior Daniel Elliot came back to his apartment at Hoosier Courts after winter break, he wasn’t feeling the holiday spirit.\nTo Elliot’s surprise, his apartment had been burglarized and the door leading to his room had been kicked in.\nElliot and his roommates lost an iPod, prescription drugs, alcohol, DVDs and cash. Their neighbors lost almost $400 in cash, and Elliot said he saw four to five other apartments in his complex that had also been broken into.\nBloomington Police Department Capt. Joe Qualters said Bloomington had 64 burglaries between Dec. 15 and Jan. 7, a number that includes businesses and multiple burglaries in Elliot’s apartment complex. But BPD Sgt. Mick Williams said students can take a number of precautions during breaks to help protect their property.\nFirst, he said, students should take anything valuable home with them, including iPods, laptops and game systems.\nWilliams also recommended that students record serial numbers of valuable items so that if they are found, the items can be returned to them.\nWilliams said students should make sure their windows lock and to get dead bolts on their doors.\nIt was easier to prevent break-ins when Qualter first joined BPD because most student housing was located in the same area, so police could better watch over it during the breaks, he said.\n“Twenty years ago you knew the traditional apartment complexes, but now they’re spread out over town,” Qualters said. “They’re not quite as compact.”\nBut no matter what precautions they take, it might not be enough to stop a determined criminal, Qualters said.\n“The bottom line is if someone wants to get in, they’re going to,” Qualters said. “But hopefully they’re going to create a lot of noise and someone will hear it.”