Facing Crime on Campus

In late October and November, Harvard students received a flood of emails from the Harvard University Police Department about crimes occurring on and near campus. The sudden spike in violent crime caused many to question their safety and change their daily habits.

“I remember I kept getting email [advisories] on different nights,” says Emily K. Harburg ’11, a resident of Mather House. “It was a bit of a surprise to me—you get in the bubble, and you feel really sheltered and comfortable.”

Harburg used to take shortcut paths and smaller streets when walking back to her House at night, but she then switched to paths that were more “socially in Harvard” as opposed to the shorter ones after reading the alerts.

Similarly, Nicole K. Kapu ’14 quickened her pace as she walked through the dimly lit sidewalk from Lamont at night as she crossed the Barker Center on her way to her dorm in Hurlbut.

Benjamin A. Silva ’14, in his first semester at Harvard, was walking with two male friends on Brattle Street early November at 2 a.m. when a man attempted to rob them at gunpoint.

“I was in a very safe position . . . I was with two others.” Silva says. “I was doing all those things.”

The Harvard University Campus Escort Program made 40 escorted trips in November, doubling the number of trips they made during November 2009, according to information provided by HUPD spokesperson Steven G. Catalano in December. Prior to the spike, only 10 trips had been made in the month of October, indicating that students turned to available safety resources after the increase in crime.

Though according to the Cambridge Police Department, violent crime and robberies in Cambridge from 2009 to 2010 decreased by 3 and 5 percent, respectively, the University experienced 10 robberies on or near campus between Oct. 30 and Nov. 21—eight of which took place in the first two weeks.

In response to the increase in crime, the College and students began to take cautionary measures while HUPD and Cambridge police tracked and investigated the incidents.

Through the combination of increased communication at biweekly meetings and open sharing of data with civilians and neighboring police departments, CPD was able to address the worrying trend and arrest suspects who were allegedly involved in the robberies.

The spike in robberies prompted changes in HUPD and CPD policing procedures as the departments coordinated their efforts to control and minimize crime in Cambridge.

CRIME AFTER CRIME

The string of crimes that began at the end of October and stretched into late November were spread throughout Harvard Square, ranging from around Mass. Ave., near the Quad, to inside the Yard.

The crime wave began with a robbery at the Harvard University Credit Union on Oct. 30, when an unarmed man stole $8,372 in cash from the bank, according to HUPD. No one was harmed.

Two days later, two Harvard affiliates were robbed at knifepoint six minutes apart by two men near the Harvard Divinity School. One victim received a stab wound, and the suspects stole the victim’s cell phone, wallet, and cash after the victim refused to comply with the demand for the victim’s possessions.

The victims’ descriptions of the suspects to Cambridge police matched those of suspects who had committed four street robberies at knifepoint near MIT in the previous week.

On Nov. 2, the robberies continued when suspects of the same description stole a Somerville resident’s laptop, cell phone, and wallet on Shepard Street outside of the Quad.

Later that night, men of the same description robbed a resident at knifepoint on Albany Street near MIT.

One the suspects was arrested the next day, but the other remained at large. The robberies continued.

A man was robbed on Mass. Ave. outside of the Dudley Co-op on Nov. 6 by two suspects who demanded the victim’s money and then sliced his face with a pocket knife. Although this crime was conducted by two suspects again, Cambridge police said, at the time, they did not think the robberies were connected.

The following week, on Nov. 11, a man unaffiliated with Harvard was robbed at gunpoint in the Yard near Thayer Hall. The victim complied and handed over his wallet to the suspect. A suspect was later arrested by Cambridge police. While the event was the fifth robbery in Harvard Square in two weeks, it was the first time a gun was presented.

A different suspect, who has recently been found guilty, fired a gun at a member of CPD when the officer interrupted the man’s attempt to rob Silva and two other Harvard freshmen on Nov. 13 on Brattle Street. The suspect was caught shortly thereafter.

Another suspect, who was later arrested, and two accomplices robbed a Boston resident by the Harvard Square T Station and demanded the victim’s cell phone and wallet early in the morning on Nov. 16.

A male Harvard undergraduate was robbed on the corner of Walker Street and Shepard Street on Nov. 21. The CPD said, at the time, they did not think the incident was related to others in the spike.

ACTING FAST

In response to the spree of robberies in the fall of 2010, HUPD and Cambridge police swiftly enacted measures to increase safety around Harvard’s campus.

HUPD upped the number of officers on patrol in street clothes and uniforms, according to Catalano.

“Officers made themselves visible on campus,” Catalano says.

For example, police vehicles parked in the Yard would keep their lights turned on to signal police presence.

Issuing prompt community advisories each time a crime was committed contributed to the crime’s notoriety, says Daniel M. Riviello, who joined CPD in May 2010 as its new spokesperson.

Additionally, information has been conveyed efficiently and regularly between the five neighboring police departments, including HUPD and the MBTA police.

Per the request of the Cambridge City Council, CPD became more transparent in publishing their crime statistics. Under a new initiative called BridgeStat, CPD releases to the public a comprehensive analytical document of Cambridge crimes, statistics, and trends the first week of every month on their website.

“[Cambridge police] increased better use of data and intelligence, increased better communication between police departments, and increased information sharing,” says Daniel Wagner, the commanding officer for the department of crime analysis and technical services for Cambridge police.

They also increased their presence and security surrounding Harvard’s campus by reallocating their officers throughout the day to reflect the crime patterns that statistics described.

The College administration has also worked with HUPD and Cambridge police to increase the safety of campus for students.

The Office of Student Life announced in December that the College would “adopt a more visible stance” in response to the crimes that took place in November.

Students are frequently advised by the College to lock their doors, not allow people to follow them into residences, and take notice of their surroundings.

“We have a really robust security system in place,” says Dean of Student Life Suzy M. Nelson, “and what we sometimes have to do more of, and we are doing, is making students understand that.

CAPTURING THE SUSPECTS

One day in early November, within 12 hours of an inter-police unit “meeting to formulate a strategy to address these incidents,” police officials arrested one robbery suspect who was possibly involved in a string of eight robberies, according to the alert sent after his capture.

This arrest was made possible by the efforts of seven different police departments and the U. S. Secret Service, the advisory said.

The suspect, Santony Joseph, pleaded not guilty to 11 charges of armed robbery and three charges of assault and battery with a dangerous weapon on Jan. 14.

Kai R. Kruger, who was accused of attempted murder after holding students up, fleeing the scene, and firing a gun at a Cambridge police officer who pursued him on foot, was arrested on Nov. 13. Kruger was found guilty of 12 counts of armed robbery, intimidating a witness, assault with intent to murder, and carrying a firearm after his trial ended on May 6. Kruger will be sentenced on May 31.

Paul Gowell, a suspect in the robbery of the Harvard University Employees Credit Union on Oct. 30, was arrested on Dec. 20. Cambridge police and the FBI Bank Robbery Task Force had been tracking the string of bank robberies in Cambridge and set up surveillance to observe Gowell.

Gowell pleaded not guilty to all six charges, five of which were for unarmed robbery, on April 1.

Fernando Martinez was arrested on Nov. 16 for a robbery he had allegedly committed that morning, according to the Cambridge Police log. He was charged with robbery, disorderly conduct, and resisting arrest.

A suspect in the Yard robbery—in which a man unaffiliated with the University was robbed at gunpoint outside of Thayer Hall on Nov. 11—was arraigned on Nov. 12.

Cambridge police says that increased communication with other police departments facilitated several arrests of suspects involved in the October and November crime spree.

SAFE NOW?

Catalano acknowledges the spike in crime, but says he is confident in the safety of Harvard’s campus.

“Harvard is a safe campus in a safe city that experienced a spike in violent crime,” Catalano says.

Pforzheimer House Master Nicholas A. Christakis echoes these sentiments. While two crimes in the October and November spree occurred near the Quad on Shepard Street, he says the shuttle service provides a safe transportation option for students.

“I think [the campus] is as safe as one can hope for in a urban environment. I think it’s great that we can provide shuttle service. We can always provide more shuttle service,” Christakis says.

Indeed, despite the increase in robberies, one student said he never felt at risk.

“I still feel safe even though I see the alerts,” Christopher M. Goldstein ’13 says. “It hasn’t happened to me.”

Harburg adds that Harvard’s transparency about the crimes shows that the University is committed to student safety.

“In general, it seems like Harvard has been really good at making us feel safe,” Harburg said. “It’s good that they’re willing to share that experience with us and not keep us naïve to it.”

—Sirui Li, Monika L. S. Robbins, Hana N. Rouse, and Heng Shao contributed to the reporting of this article.

—Staff writer Kerry M. Flynn can be reached at kflynn@college.harvard.edu.

—Staff writer Xi Yu can be reached at xyu@college.harvard.edu.