WUR was targeted by robbers four times in a year. On three occasions, computers were stolen. Photo Shutterstock Last week there was another break-in. A thief broke open the door of a practical room in Forum and took dozens of computers. And this was not the first time.
‘We‘ve had four serious break-in attempts in our education buildings in the last year‘, says Martijn van den Heuvel, head of integrated facility management. ‘On one occasion the thief was caught red-handed and arrested by the police. During the other three incidents, the most recent of which took place last Wednesday, dozens of computers were stolen.’ The computers in question are small, flat, so-called client computers, whose small size makes them an easy target compared to the large, old-fashioned computers. ‘They can easily fit in a backpack without attracting attention.’
Calculated
‘This is a balancing act between security and accessibility’, Van den Heuvel explains. ‘We want to be accessible so that people can meet each other and students can use our buildings to work. But that also exposes us to such unpleasant incidents.’
It would appear that WUR accepts break-ins as a calculated risk. ‘In a sense that is the case, but it does not mean we are lenient. After the two break-ins in May last year, we increased our security measures. We started with light measures: ensuring that there is always someone present near public spaces where valuable items are stored, training our employees to identify threats and removing the sliders that show whether a room is occupied or not.’
These inspections were useful, as they resulted in a thief being caught red-handed last September. Van den Heuvel: ‘An alert employee saw someone acting suspiciously. The police arrived quickly and apprehended the thief on his way to the exit. We recovered some of the stolen devices.’
Cages
In September, the decision was made to lock computers in metal cages that are bolted to the desks. These cages are designed to make stealing items more challenging. Moreover, doors are more frequently locked. ‘In this case, that wasn’t much help as the burglar broke open the door’, Van den Heuvel stated. Extra wry is the fact that ‘believe it or not, the cages are to be delivered next week.’
When asked, the police reveal that no less than seven reports of burglary were made in the last 6 months. Van den Heuvel: ‘We are also aware that personal belongings of students and staff sometimes disappear when they leave their laptop or phone on the table to visit the bathroom. These are risks you will encounter in all publicly accessible buildings and grounds.’
