University of Vermont police reported a cluster of thefts on campus during the past week, one of which was a $20,000 loss to the university.Â
UVM Police Chief Tim Bilodeau said four cameras were stolen from UVM’s athletic complex during the night Thursday, June 24, or early the following morning. The athletic department uses the equipment to broadcast games.
Two large cameras were worth about $9,000 each. The other two cameras and their cases bring the estimated value of the stolen items to about $20,000.
Bilodeau said a small electric vehicle — it’s a bit larger than a golf cart, and referred to as a GEM vehicle — was also stolen from UVM’s Redstone Campus during the weekend and found abandoned near Pine Street in Burlington. Bilodeau said this was the second GEM vehicle stolen in the last few weeks.
UVM police also reported break-ins at UVM’s Coolidge Hall during the weekend, where Bilodeau said “very minor stuff” was taken. Bilodeau did not give details of the alleged thefts at Coolidge Hall.
“We don’t necessarily believe they’re connected; it just happened in a small period of time,” Bilodeau said.
UVM police are reviewing security camera footage to investigate how someone was able to enter the buildings, as police found no damage to any campus facilities. Bilodeau said the person who stole the GEM vehicle may have reached it by breaking into Coolidge Hall.
Bilodeau said it was unusual for broadcast equipment to be specifically targeted, and he hopes someone from the community comes forward with information.
“It is some very specific equipment, and may or may not have anything to do with campus,” Bilodeau said.
UVM’s crime statistics, which federal law requires the university to report, show an increase in burglaries in the past few years. There were seven on-campus burglaries in 2017 and 15 in 2019, the most recent year of available data.
“There’s certainly high value to it, but having said that, it’s just a property crime,” Bilodeau said. “It’s not the worst thing in the world.”