Students who walk around with headphones on, jamming out to music, may want to consider putting away their smartphones or iPods when they walk to their cars at night.
Bruce Harber, director of police services, said students should be more aware of their surroundings when walking around campus at night, especially if they're texting, talking or playing music on their phones.
In the United States last year, one in three robberies involved some type of smartphone, Harber said. He said when people walk with headphones on, criminals assume they have a nice phone.
The most recent robbery occurred at 9:30 p.m. on Monday. Chuang Gao, 38, and Lijia Wang, 24, were walking on Southern Avenue when a man with a handgun took items belonging to the two, according to a police report.
According to the safety alert sent to all students, faculty and staff, the man described to police was in his mid- to late-20s, approximately 6 feet tall, with a slim to muscular build and medium complexion. He was also described as wearing a gray hooded sweatshirt and dark running shorts. He was last seen running south on Patterson Street at Spottswood Avenue.
A couple of years ago, some people were asking students to borrow their phones and then disappearing. Law enforcement is working with some phone companies to make it harder for thieves to steal valuable smartphones, according to Harber.
On campus, no robberies have occurred this year, and the overall crime on the U of M campus is down by 8.9 percent, according to Harber. Simple theft is the biggest issue, where students leave items unattended and come back to find their belongings stolen.
"There's always room for improvement until we get that number to zero," he said.
Projects have been implemented to make the campus safer, including the increase of lighting in the Central Avenue and Southern Avenue parking lots. The 600 cameras around campus also helped apprehend someone involved with a robbery last year, according to Harber.
Students can also utilize Tiger Escort, a service the University provides to drive students to different locations around campus at night. If escorts cannot drive students to their car, they will walk with them.
Anyone with information about the most recent robbery should contact University Police at 901-678-4357. As soon as the suspect is identified, a TigerText will be sent out to cancel the alert previously sent.
