According to the UCCS Police crime logs, there have been over 50 reports of criminal activity since the beginning of August.
Deputy Chief Clay Garner said that the most common on-campus crimes are property and opportunity crimes; for example, the three car break-ins and one car theft that occurred in October. He also said the most common student-committed crimes are underage drinking and marijuana use.
Property and opportunity crime
The four car-related crimes reported in October are not an unnatural occurrence. “That number is pretty regular. One to two perpetrators will be on a spree, then it’ll be a dry period once they get caught. It’s cyclical,” said Garner.
The one car stolen from campus has been recovered, and the perpetrator left a screwdriver with their fingerprints on it, so Garner said it’s only a matter of time before the suspect is caught.
Opportunity crimes are not as calculated as these car thefts, in which the suspects have been caught on video scanning each car for valuable items and testing locked door handles.
Sexual assault and unlawful sexual contact
Other crimes committed on campus are sexual assault and unlawful sexual contact, or sexual harassment, which, while infrequent, do occur. “There are one to five reports of sexual assault and unlawful sexual contact annually,” said Garner.
In fall 2024, there has been one report of sexual assault and one report of sexual harassment, but only the sexual assault case is being pursued by campus police.
Since all UCCS staff and mentors are required to report this type of crime if they hear about it, the sexual harassment case was reported by someone other than the victim. When campus police reached out to the victim, they declined to pursue legal action, and the report was unfiled.
The sexual assault case is still open and no arrests have been made.
Alcohol and marijuana in the dorms
Compared to reports of underage alcohol and marijuana use in the dorms in August (0) and September (2), the number of reports are slowly increasing as the end of the semester nears.
“At the beginning of the fall semester and the end of the fall and spring semesters, underage drinking and marijuana usage spikes … In October 2024, there were three cases with five different students involving alcohol and marijuana,” said Garner.
With a relatively typical crime season, campus police look back on the fall semester with success, and their next big goal is to catch the people breaking into cars.
To report a campus crime, call the university police at 255-3111 or 3111 on a campus phone. You can also use the university’s website to submit a report anonymously.
Summit Village at UCCS. Photo by Josiah Dolan.