The VSU Police Department advises students to be especially careful and to never leave their stuff unattended due to a recent string of vehicle break-ins.

 According to the media log from VSUPD, there have been nine vehicle break-in cases on campus reported this year.

 The areas of reported break -ins include Sustella and Oak Street parking decks.

 According to Scott Doner, VSU police director, this can happen on any campus parking lot.

 “Since this can happen on any parking lot, I can’t answer which parking is the safest,” he said. “Regardless you shouldn’t leave your valuables like laptops, phones or even textbooks on the front seat to be seen. Take them with you or lock them in the trunk. Don’t give people opportunity.”

 Doner also mentioned that the most common way for people to break-in vehicles is through windows. Forgetting to lock your vehicle or leaving the window open also present easy opportunities.

 According to Doner, since there are some security cameras that have been set on various parking lots, students still have the chance to identify the suspect–but the chances are very rare.

 “We do have cameras and try to look back the log, but it is still difficult to find out,” he said. “Cameras might not be spotted at the exact spot at that time. Parking lots aren’t always well lit—that’s one of the things we’ve been asking for.”

 Students that find themselves victims of such break-ins are encouraged to report it to VSU police as well as to check their car insurance policy. Some insurance companies require you to file the police report to cover the case.