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If You See Something, Say Something

New York City’s Metropolitan Transit Authority designed the “If You See Something, Say Something” campaign in 2002 to assist in securing the transit system in the New York City area. The campaign encouraged riders to contact public safety officials if they witnessed suspicious activity or came across an unattended package. The HUPD is adopting a similar campaign to address one of the biggest crime problems on campus: thefts. Over the last five years we have recorded approximately 700 thefts annually. Almost all of the thefts involved the taking of unattended property from public spaces or from unsecured offices and residences. Thefts from offices and residences usually were perpetrated by individuals with no connection to the University who entered locked buildings illegally by piggybacking or entered unlocked buildings.

In order for the HUPD to maintain a safe and secure environment for the students, faculty, and staff of the University, it needs the help of the community. The HUPD can not do it alone! As noted, take precautions to protect your property by never leaving it unattended in public and by locking your room or office when you leave it even for a moment, and maintain your safety while traveling throughout campus by walking with others on well-lit streets and by using the shuttle bus, escort van or HUCEP.

In addition, we need you to serve as our eyes and ears. You are in a better position to identify behavior and activities that are out of the ordinary in your residence or workplace. When you do identify suspicious behavior we need you to call the HUPD. You should trust your instincts. If something doesn’t seem right, it probably isn’t. Don’t ignore it or keep it to yourself. Call us – even if you are unsure about what is occurring. We are not encouraging community members to intervene or take actions on their own. We just need you to take a moment to call us to alert us to the situation. We will then dispatch officers immediately to investigate the situation and take appropriate actions.

Below are examples of community members who saw something that didn’t seem right and called us immediately. In these cases and in others, the HUPD was able to arrest the offenders.

• May 2005 – A Harvard student called HUPD to report that an individual had “piggybacked” into Cabot House. Another student later stated they had left their keys in the door of their room, and when they returned, their Harvard ID and money was missing from their keychain. As a result of this call, HUPD was able to identify and arrest the offender. In April 2006, HUPD received a call about an individual who had been observed “piggybacking” into Cabot House on different occasions over the past several weeks. Officers were able to stop and identify the individual. The individual, the same offender in the May 2005 incident, was summonsed into court.
• October 2005 – Students observed an individual acting suspiciously inside of Mather House. The students proceeded to both call HUPD and talk to the individual to prevent him from leaving the area while HUPD was en route. Once officers arrived, the individual was questioned and checked for warrants. Three outstanding default warrants were discovered, and the individual was placed under arrest by HUPD.
• January 2006 – Officers received a call about suspicious persons inside the fourth floor studio room of Gund Hall. As officers arrived, an individual matching one of the descriptions was walking away from the elevators. After obtaining the individual’s identity, it was determined that he had previously been arrested by HUPD in 2003 for breaking and entering. The officers placed the individual under arrest for trespassing.
• March 2006 – As a nonaffiliated female was walking home alone in the early morning, a car, which had been following her for several blocks, pulled in front of her. A male exited the vehicle, pointed what appeared to be a gun at the female, and instructed her to get into the car. Believing the gun to be a fake, the student attempted to get away from the suspect. The individual grabbed her by the arm and pulled her to the ground, and she began to scream. Her screams were heard by a security guard stationed at the Kennedy School, who ran across the street to assist the female. The suspect got back into his car and fled the scene.
• April 2006 – During his regular patrol of the JFK and Taubman buildings, a security guard noticed someone behind a cubicle holding a purse. When the individual was asked for Harvard identification, the offender stated he had none, at which point the security guard declared he was calling the police. The individual then turned and ran out the door, exiting the building. Once outside, the individual got on a bicycle and rode it across the street before dumping it to run. The security guard ran after the offender and followed while providing the offender’s whereabouts to the HUPD. Due to this security guard’s actions, the offender was arrested by HUPD.

These examples demonstrate the positive results that can occur when community members who observe suspicious activity call the HUPD immediately. A couple of the examples also point out what can occur when individuals allow strangers to “piggyback”. By being vigilant and looking out for each other, students, faculty, and staff can assist the HUPD in keeping the University safe and secure. The small inconvenience of calling the HUPD is far outweighed by the benefit of removing someone who doesn’t belong in a building and is there to take someone’s property.