Says could have happened to anyone after thieves ‘remove window’

By ALEXANDER SIMONE

Staff writer

When Tabor College student Calvin Tipton found four pairs of shoes and $400 stolen from his dorm room between Oct. 31 and Nov. 1, he had a cautionary tale to tell.

“People know they can get away with it,” he said. “I was gone the whole weekend and my whole room was broken into. The window was broken into.”

Tabor collaborates with Hillsboro police on security matters, and has security cameras around campus, college President Jules Glanzer.

“We have a very good working relationship with Hillsboro police,” he said. “We work with them on all matters relating to public safety.”

Tipton, an honor student and sneaker aficionado whose four pairs of stolen shoes were worth $1,725, said the same thing could happen to any student.

His account was the most recent, but there have been other incidents of theft at Tabor.

The last incident occurred in May when a Spanish exchange student had $203, as well as 20 Euros, stolen from his dorm. The victim reported his door was locked, but law enforcement reported no signs of forced entry.

“I don’t know how secure the dorms are, but usually when we have a burglary the biggest problem is that the door is unlocked,” police chief Dan Kinning said.

In Tipton’s case, the door was locked when the robbery took place, and perpetrators had to enter through a window, according to police reports.

There was no broken glass found at the scene because the window had been removed during the break-in, Tipton said.

There was a previous theft several years ago that occurred in a similar fashion, police chief Dan Kinning said.

“I worked one that was the same pod and it was the same way,” he said. “They went through the window, but I think they might have broken that one.”

Tipton, who is on an athletic scholarship through May but is currently home in California, sees the break-in as a problem that starts with the college.

“That’s Tabor’s fault for not having security cameras and the dorms not being up to date,” he said. “How can someone tear the whole window off?”

In past instances of theft, the only option was for students to be reimbursed by insurance, Tipton said.