TUPD has filed four vehicle-related reports on campus, including two vehicle burglaries and two vehicle thefts on campus and in the City Vista area this semester, according to Trinity University Police Department (TUPD) Chief of Police Paul Chapa.
The vehicle burglaries occurred on Old Hildebrand Avenue on Jan. 12 and in the City Vista parking garage on Feb. 24. The vehicle thefts occurred on Old Hildebrand on Feb. 8 and another in the William H. Bell Athletic Center Parking Lot O on Feb. 12. According to Chapa, TUPD documented and investigated all reported cases. Both stolen vehicles have been recovered.
Ximena Hasbach, sophomore human resource management and sociology double-major, reported her car stolen from the parking lot in front of the Bell Center in the early morning hours of Feb. 12. Later that day, an officer from the San Antonio Police Department (SAPD) called Hasbach and informed her that SAPD found the caron the side of Interstate 35, about five miles from Trinity. According to Hasbach, the perpetrators have not been identified.
The perpetrators did not steal any of her belongings from her car except for some loose change, though they did destroy many of the personal photos she kept inside. Hasbach believes the perpetrators were a young couple who committed other illegal acts while they had the car due to the belongings they left behind in her vehicle, including knives, alcohol, gloves, zip ties, a makeup bag, sweaters, food and LongHorn Steakhouse uniforms. After getting the car towed, a mechanic informed Hasbach that the engine had been destroyed, likely due to driving the car at maximum speed.
Currently, Hasbach plans to sell the car and buy a new one.“It was so much more sentimental becauseI bought my own car,” Hasbach said. “The caris under my name. I bought the car off entirely, I pay for my own insurance and it’s my way of getting around everywhere. Someone just took that from me.”
Maddie Stovall, junior political science major, reported her car stolen from Old Hildebrand Avenue on Feb. 8 after parking it on Feb. 7. According to Stovall, SAPD discovered it with a broken window on Feb. 8, before it had been reported stolen, at an Alamo Drafthouse about 15 minutes away from campus. The City of San Antonio Vehicle Impound Facility sent a letter to Stovall’s mother on March 2 informing her that the car had been recovered. Stovall is unsure what caused the delay, but she believes it was because the car was not yet reported stolen when it was recovered. The perpetrators have not been identified, and they did not steal any of Stovall’s belongings inside the car.
Chapa advised all students, including those planning to live in City Vista next year, to stay aware of their belongings and surroundings and to practice basic crime-prevention steps. He advised students to:
- Lock their doors
- Close their windows
- Park in well-lit areas when possible
- Remove valuables from outside view
- Use anti-theft devices
- Report any suspicious activity to TUPD as soon as possible
- “Vehicle burglaries and thefts occur through large metropolitan areas, and unfortunately college campuses are not immune,” Chapa wrote in an email interview. “That said, the number of incidents in our area remains relatively low.”
In comparison to the reported and published vehicle-related crimes at local universities, Trinity’s vehicle-related crime rate is moderate. According to crime logs published by the University of the Incarnate Word (UIW) Police Department, two vehicle burglaries were filed at UIW between Jan. 1 and Feb. 18. UIW Police Department has not yet published any crime logs after Feb. 18. Additionally, according to the University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) Police Department’s crime logs, two vehicle thefts and 12 vehicle burglaries have been filed at UTSA between Jan. 1 and March 13.
To report a theft or burglary, call TUPD’s non-emergency line at 210-999-7070, email them at [email protected] or visit their office at 538 Kings Court.
