By Devyn Briones
Arts & Entertainment Editor
The Signal and Campus Police work together on a weekly basis to inform the campus community about crime on and around campus. All records given to The Signal are public records and do not contain personal information. Some information provided may be triggering for some students.
Feb. 17: Fire alarm
Campus Police were dispatched to Cromwell Hall for an activated fire alarm coming from a resident’s room. During the time of the alarm, only one resident of the suite was present, who stated he was in his room when the alarm went off.
Ewing Township Fire Squad 39 arrived on scene, checked the area and confirmed that it was an unknown cause of activation.
Feb. 20: Another fire alarm
At approximately 10:11 a.m., a fire alarm went off in Cromwell Hall and the entire building was evacuated. A building technician worker stated that they were replacing sprinkler heads in the building. The fire pump was put into test mode and the building was deemed safe to reoccupy by the fire department.
Feb. 21: Cooking gone wrong
A smoke alarm was activated in Decker Hall at approximately 9:43 a.m. There were no signs of fire located inside the room of activation, but the resident said he was cooking when the smoke detector was activated. The resident was advised to open the window and air out the room. The cause of activation was determined to be the steam from cooking.
Feb. 22: Dirty toaster oven
Campus Police was dispatched to Decker Hall for an activated fire alarm, set off in one of the rooms. Campus Police met with the resident, who stated he was using his toaster oven when it began to smoke, causing the alarm to go off. The student said the smoke detector had gone off the day before for the same reason. Campus Police advised the student to clean or dispose of the toaster oven to prevent any further alarm activations.
Feb. 23: The importance of adding water to microwave mac n’ cheese
A fire alarm was activated in Townhouses East in one of the houses. A resident of the house admitted that she forgot to add water to her microwave mac and cheese, causing smoke and a burning smell to linger throughout the house and initially set off the smoke detector.
At approximately 8:40 p.m., Ewing Township Fire Squad 30 arrived on scene. Once firefighters finished checking the area, the alarm system was reset.
Feb. 24: Threatening calls from the so-claimed “cartel”
At approximately 2:49 p.m., Campus Police received a call from a resident at the College. The student claims that at around 2:20 p.m., he began to receive text messages from someone who claimed to be part of the “cartel,” sending threatening text messages and calling the student. The student is unsure as to why he was receiving these messages.
The unknown sender threatened him and his family if the student did not go to Western Union and send him $5,000. The sender also sent the student photos of people being abused and mutilated. The student says he doesn’t know how the sender could have gotten his phone number, but said he did use an adult search website that allows you to speak with someone for money.
He says the website provided him with a phone number to contact, which he did reach out to, but did not give any personal information except for the fact that he lives in Ewing Township and goes to college, not specifying which one. The student did not send any personal information or money to this sender as well, along with any photos that could be used against him. Campus Police advised the student to block both phone numbers to prevent any future communications.
Feb. 24: Donuts “do-nut” make you look cool
Around 8:31 p.m., a car was reported to be recklessly driving on the top floor of the Decker Hall parking garage. When Campus Police arrived, they could hear tires screeching from the top level. The driver left the lot when Campus Police reached the top lot, and there were no signs of damage or any seen vehicle fleeing at that time. Security cameras picked up the car, a silver 2013 Lexus GS, but is registered to a non-resident at the College.
Campus Police called the suspected driver at approximately 9:07 p.m. to talk with them at Campus Police headquarters. When asked if the suspect drives a silver Lexus and if he was driving in the Decker Garage, he responded yet. The suspect denies doing donuts on the top floor, though video footage says otherwise. He was ticketed with failure to maintain lane and careless driving.
Feb. 25: Electrical burns
At approximately 1:19 p.m., Campus Police were dispatched to Phelps Hall for an activated fire alarm. There were no signs of fire located inside the room with the activated alarm, but there was a strong odor that resembled an electrical burn. The cause for the activation was determined to be a burnt belt inside an HVAC vent.
Feb. 25: Chemical smells
Campus Police were dispatched to the STEM Building in regards to a gas smell around 4:10 p.m. There was a strong chemical odor coming from room 222, but no apparent source. It was determined that the smell may have migrated from the STEM shop.
Feb. 28: Burnt parchment paper
Campus Police were dispatched to Decker Hall for an activated smoke alarm coming from the fourth floor at approximately 1:09 a.m. The resident of the room claims the alarm was activated after he microwaved mozzarella sticks with parchment paper, causing the paper to smoke.
