Weld Thefts Alarm Students

After a recent one-day string of burglaries in Weld Hall, a group of student dorm-crew workers and a first-year proctor are missing valuable belongings, and nervous first-year students are taking extra precautions to lock their doors.

The burglaries occurred on the morning of Thursday, September 5, when the dorm-crew workers living in the building at the time were outside at work. The victims included one proctor and at least five dorm-crew students.

Because there were no signs of forced entry, security guards and Freshmen Dean's Office officials believe the crimes were the work of someone who had obtained a master key.

Assistant Dean of Students Eleanor Sparagana said yesterday that police said they had identified a few suspects, but no arrests have yet been made. At Sparagana's request, all door locks in Weld were replaced the following day, when crowds of first-years began moving into the dormitory.

The first-year proctor, Joel L. Derfner '95, was in his fifth-floor bedroom when the burglary occurred. He later entered the common room to find his Onkia stereo receiver, worth about $200, missing, along with a suitcase that was apparently used to store the stereo equipment.

"I was disturbed, I was freaked out," said Derfner, "I've never known a proctor to be robbed or burgled before." He filed a report with Harvard police officers immediately after he noticed the items were missing, and received a call from the detective on the case a few days later.

After Derfner's 10:39 a.m. call to the police, four more calls--at 5:46 p.m., 7:36 p.m., 8:14 p.m. and 11:23 p.m.--were made to the police reporting burglaries, according to the Harvard University Police Department's log. University officials suggested the burglaries probably all occurred in the morning but that they were not detected until dormcrew students returned from work.

An extra police officer was stationed in the building by the afternoon, but no suspects were apprehended and there is no description of the perpetrator. Plainclothes police officers patrolled the building "for the next few nights" following the incident, according to a security guard at the police substation in Weld basement, who identified himself only as Frank.

"Whoever it was knew that they were all gone during the day," Frank said. "Nobody's seen the suspect." Mike Auterio, the security guard on duty when the burglaries occurred, couldn't be reached for comment yesterday.

Frank said the burglaries were "bigger than the usual" thefts reported during the year.

According to Andrew Mandel '00, a fifth-floor Weld resident living in the building at the time of the robbery, one student lost cologne and some electronic equipment as a result of the robbery.

"I realize that we're in an urban environment and things are bound to happen," Mandel said. "I didn't expect it--but I wasn't surprised.

Some are taking precautions. "We're keeping our doors locked," said Juri Henley-Cohn '00, another fifth-floor resident. His roommate, Brian Johnson '00, said he was afraid a similar incident might occur. "There's pretty much nothing you can do if someone gets the master key," he said.

Other students in the dorm complained officials had not notified them of the robberies. "I kind of wished they had told us," said Jason L. Freidenfelds '00. "I would have taken precautions to lock the doors when I go to the bathroom. Sometimes I don't lock the doors, but now I will."

Not all students were told of the burglaries because such a string of larcenies occurs very rarely, Sparagana said. "We didn't want to alarm them because all the locks had been changed," she said

An extra police officer was stationed in the building by the afternoon, but no suspects were apprehended and there is no description of the perpetrator. Plainclothes police officers patrolled the building "for the next few nights" following the incident, according to a security guard at the police substation in Weld basement, who identified himself only as Frank.

"Whoever it was knew that they were all gone during the day," Frank said. "Nobody's seen the suspect." Mike Auterio, the security guard on duty when the burglaries occurred, couldn't be reached for comment yesterday.

Frank said the burglaries were "bigger than the usual" thefts reported during the year.

According to Andrew Mandel '00, a fifth-floor Weld resident living in the building at the time of the robbery, one student lost cologne and some electronic equipment as a result of the robbery.

"I realize that we're in an urban environment and things are bound to happen," Mandel said. "I didn't expect it--but I wasn't surprised.

Some are taking precautions. "We're keeping our doors locked," said Juri Henley-Cohn '00, another fifth-floor resident. His roommate, Brian Johnson '00, said he was afraid a similar incident might occur. "There's pretty much nothing you can do if someone gets the master key," he said.

Other students in the dorm complained officials had not notified them of the robberies. "I kind of wished they had told us," said Jason L. Freidenfelds '00. "I would have taken precautions to lock the doors when I go to the bathroom. Sometimes I don't lock the doors, but now I will."

Not all students were told of the burglaries because such a string of larcenies occurs very rarely, Sparagana said. "We didn't want to alarm them because all the locks had been changed," she said