On Wednesday, Nov. 22, the UP community was alerted of a burglary occuring in Buckley Center the day prior, Nov. 21, at approximately 4:30 p.m. Director of Campus Safety and Emergency Management Michael McNerney sent an email to the student and staff body asserting that two individuals had entered Buckley Hall and stolen a bag containing belongings and credit cards of a faculty member.
The two individuals were not apprehended and have not been found.
McNerney identified the individuals as engaging in “social engineering” to distract the faculty member, with one pretending to be a visitor to campus looking for the administration building. It was then that the other individual stole the faculty member’s bag.
The burglary occuring around 4:30 p.m. potentially puts it past the window in which academic buildings are open without key card access, which closes at 4:30 p.m. This means the individuals could have been let in by a community member.
However, despite the burglary, McNerney still encourages students and staff to support and aid visitors on campus.
“Please do not be discouraged from assisting visitors to our campus who appear lost or confused,” McNerney said in the email to the UP community. “One of the greatest strengths of our community is the kindness and support we offer one another and our guests. It is our responsibility to ourselves and all future Pilots to protect that warm and welcoming spirit of the University of Portland campus and community.”
The faculty member was able to retrieve their credit cards, which had been frozen after being used around the North Portland area.
Editor's note: A previous version of this article incorrectly identified the incident as a robbery in the headline.
Kate Cuadrado is the Editor-in-Chief of The Beacon. She can be reached at cuadrado24@up.edu.
