Campus Safety and Ottawa Police are seeking information from the public regarding a man who entered a female change room in Residence Commons on Jan. 28.
Campus Safety received a report of a theft in a first floor female change room that occurred at about 8:15 p.m., according to community liaison officer Mark Hargreaves.
Upon looking through security camera footage, Campus Safety observed a man pacing back and forth for about three to five minutes before entering the change room and eventually making off with “personal items,” Hargreaves said.
No one was in the change room at the time, and the man was seen on camera footage leaving Residence Commons toward the campus exit by Bronson Avenue and University Drive, he said.
The male suspect is white, 25 to 30 years old, about five-foot-eight, with a slim to medium build, according to Hargreaves. At the time of the incident, he was wearing blue running shoes with blue laces and white soles, a brown jacket, and black pants.
At the moment, Hargreaves said “there’s no reason to believe that there was intention but for a theft.”
The items stolen are not being disclosed as the investigation is ongoing, but are valued at “less than $20,” he said.
Residence students were not notified of the incident.
“There was no additional risk to the residence community,” Hargreaves said.
Though the theft ocurred in January, Campus Safety announced they were seeking the public’s help in identifying the man on March 3.
Alana Gerus, a second-year psychology student and a Frontenac resident, said she still feels safe in the washrooms in Residence Commons despite the incident.
“We’ve never actually encountered a guy in the women’s washroom,” she said. “So I guess we don’t have anything to compare this scenario to.”
Hargreaves is asking for anyone with information on the theft to contact them at 613-520-3612 or Crime Stoppers toll-free at 1-800-222-8477 (TIPS).
