Nothing can make up for the fact that this school year was beyond difficult, with online classes, socially distanced interaction and an abnormally empty campus. Fortunately, our favorite campus entertainment, police beat, didn’t stop when everything else did.
So to put a brighter end to this rough year, we’ve rounded up the best police beat highlights from the 2020-21 school year, pulled from our weekly police beats and Wildcat Weekly Recap news podcast.
The Cheese Touch
Two police reports make up this bizarre police beat highlight from the week of March 21-28, 2021 — showcased in our April 9 episode of our news podcast. According to the first police report, in the late hours of March 23, an officer was dispatched to Highland Market in reference to a vandalism report. When the officer arrived, he met with the reporting party, a University of Arizona student.
The student explained that she had parked outside of the market on Highland Avenue and went back to her car after around 10 minutes to find a single piece of American cheese on the hood of her car. The student expressed that she was not sure of anyone who could be behind the vandalism and wasn’t looking to press charges, just that she felt targeted and that it should be reported.
Only two hours later in the very early hours of March 24, a police officer doing a patrol of Greek Row spotted what looked to be a car chase between a black Jeep and a four door smaller vehicle. The cars turned down the alley behind Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity house and that’s when the officer began hearing someone shouting to stop, which he believed was the Jeep. He kept hearing it and decided to stop. The Jeep drove away, and the driver of the second car approached the officer, divulging that he was actually the person flagging the officer down.
He explained that he had been dropping a friend off at the Posada San Pedro dormitory when the Jeep had pulled up and thrown a piece of American cheese at his window then taken off. The driver had quickly followed them and ensued in a chase when he had finally seen the officer. The driver wanted to file a case due to liability from past issues of things being thrown at his car but did not wish to pursue criminal charges unless his window tint was actually damaged. The University of Arizona Police Department patrolled the area but did not find the black Jeep.
Classified Information
According to a police report on Feb. 4, 2021, UAPD was contacted about a questionable letter that was received at President Dr. Robert C. Robbins’ office in Old Main. The letter stated it was from a man who had key information about understanding the COVID-19 outbreak and how it was orchestrated by the New World Order.
The letter ended by stating the man was going to visit Robbins in person on Feb. 11 to discuss in further detail, which was what was concerning to Robbins’s secretary. The letter also contained a flash drive.
The UAPD officer reviewed the flash drive the next day and found that it contained two PDF files with over 750 pages of information that basically reiterated that the New World Order is responsible for the COVID-19 pandemic. He included examples justifying his point that were not specified, but he feels the information is extremely important for Robbins to know.
Robbins’ office said they were not concerned for the safety of anyone and the case is considered closed.
The Case of The Underwhelming Package
What more could you expect from intoxicated “frat types” holding a Circle K bag full of beers than publicly urinating on the side of a building? According to the police report, UAPD received a call from a witness stating that two college-age guys were urinating in public on the side of the Fred Fox School of Music building in the afternoon of Jan. 20, 2021.
The responding officer met with the reporting party who stated that he had been walking by when he noticed the two men, who were clearly intoxicated and “yelling at females walking by.”
He went on to say that he saw an “underwhelming package” when referring to the exposure of one of the guys’ penises. He did not see the other guys.
The reporting witness said that he was a victim and would like to participate in prosecution if the males were found. The officer contacted the Fine Arts building complex to request video footage of the building from that afternoon.
It’s Been A Year. Wear Your Mask!
According to a February 2021 police report, UAPD was dispatched to the UA Recreation Center racquetball courts regarding a male and female refusing to wear their masks, then refusing to leave when asked to do so.
The couple had been advised they had to wear their mask while inside the courts, according to the Student Recreation Center’s guidelines, to which they refused. The female became agitated and “loud,” stating she tested negative for COVID-19 that day. They were asked to leave or be escorted by the police.
When the couple was told the police were coming and they should just leave, the female replied, “No, I just don’t logically get what they can do.”
The officer told the couple that the Rec Center has every right to enforce their policies and to refuse service at any time, including asking people to leave.
The female stated regarding the employees, “If you want to call the police on us for not wearing a mask, go ahead.”
The officer replied he was there because they would not leave, not because they weren’t wearing masks. They were escorted out.
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