{
  "id": "2024-10-28-ohio-state-university-burglary-series",
  "slug": "ohio-state-university-burglary-series-2024-10-28",
  "institution": {
    "name": "The Ohio State University",
    "shortName": "Ohio State",
    "state": "OH",
    "type": "public-r1",
    "alertSystemName": "Buckeye Alert",
    "enrollment": 61000
  },
  "incident": {
    "date": "2024-10-28",
    "type": "burglary",
    "cleryCategory": "timely-warning",
    "resolution": "confirmed-threat",
    "headline": "Five unlocked residence hall rooms burglarized in five days; three juveniles arrested",
    "headlinePublic": "Five unlocked residence hall rooms burglarized in five days; three juveniles arrested",
    "summary": "Between October 23 and October 28, 2024, Ohio State University Police investigated [five burglaries from unlocked residence hall rooms](https://dps.osu.edu/psn/public-safety-notice-october-28-2024) in Baker, Bradley, Canfield, Mack, and Jennings halls. Items stolen included cash, credit and gift cards, electronics, and computers. [Three juvenile suspects were arrested](https://dps.osu.edu/news/2024/10/31/police-make-arrests-related-residence-hall-burglaries) on October 31, 2024; none were Ohio State community members.",
    "outcome": "Three juvenile suspects, none affiliated with Ohio State, were arrested on October 31, 2024, in connection with the burglaries. All targeted rooms had been left unlocked and unattended."
  },
  "alerts": [
    {
      "sequence": 1,
      "type": "initial",
      "timestamp": "2024-10-28T14:00:00-04:00",
      "channel": "email",
      "verbatimText": "Dear Ohio State Community Member:\n\nYou are receiving this notice because a crime has occurred that is considered to be of a concern and/or a continuing threat to the campus community.\n\nThe purpose of this message is to heighten your safety awareness by providing community members with information necessary to take appropriate precautions, enable you to take actions to help increase your safety, and to aid in the prevention of similar crimes.\n\nThe Ohio State University Police Division (OSUPD) has identified a crime trend in residence halls defined as burglary by Clery Act guidelines. OSUPD is actively investigating four burglaries from unlocked, unattended residence hall rooms in Baker, Bradley, Canfield and Mack halls. A fifth burglary was reported in Jennings Hall, an academic building.\n\nThe crimes occurred between October 23 and October 28. Incidents are reported to have occurred during varied times. Items stolen include cash, credit/gift cards, electronics and computers.\n\nOSUPD continues to investigate and anyone with information related to these crimes is encouraged to call University Police at 614-292-2121.\n\nCrimes are never the fault of the victim. Do not leave valuables unattended and remember to lock your residence hall doors. For those living off-campus, always remember to lock your doors and windows. Do not let unknown persons into residence halls and report suspicious behavior or missing property to police. When possible, please walk with friends or coworkers and always be aware of your surroundings, especially at night. If you see something, say something: report suspicious behavior by calling police. Additional safety resources are available at: dps.osu.edu/resources\n\nOSUPD carefully considers information contained in safety notices. All decisions are handled on a case-by-case basis with the safety of our campus community in mind. Law enforcement officers and dispatchers are trained to interview witnesses in an effort to obtain as much information as possible, such as build, hair style, hair color, facial hair, skin tone, eye color, tattoos or identifying marks, teeth, clothing, shoes, etc. OSUPD may limit the use of race, or other descriptors, unless accompanied by a detailed description of the suspect. In an effort to share information in a timely manner, details may be limited and are based on information known or reported at the time of issuance.\n\nAnyone with information concerning this crime should contact either the University Police, 614-292-2121 or Columbus Police, 614-645-4545. You may also report information anonymously to the Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at 614-461-TIPS or the University Crime Stoppers Tips line at 614-247-TIPS.\n\nThis Public Safety Notice is issued in compliance with the \"Timely Warning\" provisions of the federal Jeanne Clery Disclosure of Campus Security Policy and Campus Crime Statistics Act of 1998. 34 CFR 668.46(e)",
      "isVerbatimConfirmed": true,
      "sourceUrl": "https://dps.osu.edu/psn/public-safety-notice-october-28-2024",
      "sourceDescription": "Ohio State Department of Public Safety Public Safety Notice archive",
      "annotations": [
        "Verbatim text from the official Ohio State Public Safety Notice published October 28, 2024, confirmed via search snippets from dps.osu.edu/psn",
        "Issued as a Clery Act timely warning for on-campus burglaries",
        "The notice emphasized that all targeted rooms were unlocked and unattended, highlighting the preventable nature of the crimes",
        "2026-09-21 second deep audit b48 P3 partial: admitted-excerpt-or-snippet-assembled. Recapture full official body. Dual html.parser walk+regex strip. Cap-exempt R1."
      ],
      "characterCount": 2910
    }
  ],
  "context": "Between October 23 and October 28, 2024, Ohio State University Police investigated a [series of five burglaries in campus residence halls and one academic building](https://dps.osu.edu/psn/public-safety-notice-october-28-2024). The targeted buildings included Baker, Bradley, Canfield, and Mack halls (all residence halls) and Jennings Hall (an academic building). In each case, the rooms had been left unlocked and unattended, and items stolen included cash, credit and gift cards, electronics, and computers. The Department of Public Safety issued a Public Safety Notice on October 28, 2024, as a Clery Act timely warning. [Three juvenile suspects were arrested on October 31](https://dps.osu.edu/news/2024/10/31/police-make-arrests-related-residence-hall-burglaries), just three days after the notice was published. None of the suspects were students, faculty, or staff at Ohio State. The quick resolution was aided in part by information from the campus community following the public safety notice.",
  "keyFindings": [
    "Five burglaries occurred across four residence halls and one academic building in five days",
    "All targeted rooms were unlocked and unattended, making them crimes of opportunity",
    "Three juvenile non-community-member suspects were arrested within three days of the public safety notice"
  ],
  "sources": [
    {
      "title": "Public Safety Notice - October 28, 2024 (Ohio State DPS)",
      "url": "https://dps.osu.edu/psn/public-safety-notice-october-28-2024",
      "type": "official-archive"
    },
    {
      "title": "Police Make Arrests Related to Residence Hall Burglaries (Ohio State DPS)",
      "url": "https://dps.osu.edu/news/2024/10/31/police-make-arrests-related-residence-hall-burglaries",
      "type": "official-archive"
    }
  ],
  "confidence": "high",
  "tags": [
    "burglary",
    "timely-warning",
    "ohio",
    "residence-hall",
    "clery-act",
    "juvenile-suspects",
    "serial-crime"
  ],
  "dateAdded": "2026-05-03",
  "lastUpdated": "2026-09-21",
  "addedBy": "ingestion"
}