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Thefts can be prevented

by Jim Callaghan

Nov 6, 2008 11:27 AM

With grand larcenies in schools on the rise, the UFT has been working with the NYPD School Safety Division to bring crime down.

Larceny prevention tips Never walk away from your laptop. Secure your keys. Never leave them on your desk, in keyholes or unattended, allowing someone access to your property. Never leave your purse, briefcase or backpack on a desk, behind a chair or unattended. Never leave your cell phone in your coat pocket or on your desk. Secure it on your person. Keep expensive jewelry concealed. Never display large amounts of cash. Leave valuables at home. Use a strong lock, and don’t share or give out the combination or key.

Grand larcenies — thefts of more than $1,000 — have increased 173 percent over last year and the theft of laptops is up 191 percent. Forty-one percent of the property stolen belonged to UFT members.

Police officials told the New York Teacher that much of the theft can be prevented, and asked members not to let their guard down just because they think their school is relatively safe. Most of the thefts, especially of laptops, are crimes of opportunity, where a thief walks past a classroom and sees a laptop left unattended on a desk

Other thefts are more organized. In one school in the Bronx, a cart containing 40 laptops was stolen and video cameras helped nab the suspect, who was a former student at the school. Audiovisual equipment, including overhead projectors, are also disappearing from school buildings.

From the beginning of the school year through Oct. 19, there were 117 grand larcenies in the schools, with 47 of those affecting school staffers. From July through October of this year, 279 laptops were stolen. The highest number of incidents are in the Bronx and the lowest in Staten Island, which reported only one laptop stolen since the beginning of this school year.

One way to avoid laptop thefts, according to the NYPD, is to hand out fewer master keys to the cabinets or cases they are stored in, and to make sure that every computer is signed in and out.

UFT members can have their laptops protected by contacting their local NYPD School Safety Division Command. An officer will come to schools and etch identification numbers on the computers along with a difficult-to-remove sticker saying the computer and the etching number have been stored in an NYPD database. Since July, more than 5,700 laptops have been etched.

Police officials also said there should be a daily accounting system. Many times, school administrators discover the theft weeks later when the evidence trail has run cold.

Another anti-theft device is a tracking system called Computrace, which acts much like LoJack does for cars. Using this system, police have tracked stolen computers to the thieves’ homes.

UFT Director of Safety and Health Sterling Roberson advised members at safety committee meetings to discuss inventory controls, professional development on securing mobile technology (for example, laptops and peripherals), and theft of personal as well as school property.

Roberson also asked chapter leaders to pass on larceny prevention tips to their members.

Have your computers etched Chapters that would like computers etched should contact the following NYPD School Safety Division offices:

Bronx East Command: 1-718-862-1497, which covers districts 8, 9, 11, 12. Bronx West Command: 1-718-329-9163, which covers Districts 7, 9, 10, 12, 85. Staten Island Command: 1-718-816-0681, which covers Districts 31, 75,76. Brooklyn North Command: 1-718-387-1107, which covers districts 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 19, 23, 32. Brooklyn South Command: 1-718-241-9700, which covers districts 13, 14, 15, 17, 18, 20, 21, 22.

Queens North Command: 1-718-699-5417, which covers districts 24, 25, 26, 28, 30. Queens South Command: 1-718-949-6096, which covers districts 25, 26, 27, 28, 29. Manhattan North Command: 1-917-441-3600, which covers districts 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Manhattan South Command: 1-646-654-6218, which covers districts 1, 2.