Student has bone to pick

A student who received a mysterious package containing skeletal
remains reported the incident to a University of Arizona Police
Department officer at 4:40 p.m. on Nov. 19.

The student told the officer she had received an email from an employee working in the residence hall she lived in, informing her that a package was waiting for her. The student, who had not been expecting a package, told officers that when she opened the box, she was “extremely disturbed” by the remains. The word “PEOPLE” had been written on the remains in purple marker.

After examining the remains, the officer noted that it appeared to be a type of vertebrae with more skeletal structure around the bone. The officer was unable to determine if the remains were from an animal or human.

A return name and address were written on the box. The reporting officer called a police department in the city the return address was located, requesting that an officer go to the residence the package came from and interview the person living there.

When the officer arrived, he learned that one person and a caregiver lived in the apartment, and neither of them recognized the name of the student when asked, concluding involvement from the other police department.

The remains were entered into UAPD Property and Evidence. The UAPD officer requested that detectives follow up with the case. There is no further information.

Suicide threats make bad jokes

A student who had sent messages referencing suicide prompted UAPD officers to respond to her residence hall at 2:38 a.m. on Nov. 17.

Officers met at the Arizona-Sonora Residence Hall after the student’s boyfriend had called UAPD. The man requested a welfare check, explaining that his girlfriend had sent him text messages reading, “You lost me forever and you will never have me alive or dead.” Another text message followed, which read, “Have fun on your trip, hope it was worth it,” and then three more consecutive messages said, “I am killing myself,” “as we speak,” and “Goodbye.”

The student told officers he was on his way to the residence hall from a residence in the Foothills, and said that he thought his girlfriend was on her way to a party at the Tau Kappa Epsilon fraternity house, but wasn’t sure.

Police met the man at the residence hall, and entered a room where the woman was supposed to be. No one was inside the room when police entered.

One of the officers called the woman four times to no avail, and left a message to call the department’s dispatch number. In the meantime, another officer went to the fraternity house, but found no one matching the woman’s description.

The woman finally called UAPD dispatch, who forwarded the call to one of the officers. The officer asked the student if she really wanted to harm herself. The woman said no, and explained that she sent the messages because she didn’t want her boyfriend to go on a trip to Las
Vegas.

The officer noted that the student spoke in a normal manner, and was
no longer concerned for her safety, and completed a referral to the
dean of students office.

Medicine thief needs to cool it

After a student assaulted a Highland Market employee, UAPD officers arrested him on charges of shoplifting and for minor in possession of alcohol in body at 11:35 p.m. on Nov. 17.

When the officer arrived, he spoke with the store clerk who had reported the incident. The employee explained the student had come into the store and tried to buy two boxes of Mucinex with his CatCard. The clerk told the student that he couldn’t buy medicine with his CatCard, only food. The student became angry, yelling and slamming things on the counter.

The employee then began watching the store’s security camera, and noticed the student slip the item into his front pocket.

The student attempted to leave the store, but the clerk wouldn’t let him, standing in his way. The student pushed the employee out of the way, hitting his chin with his elbow. The student went back inside the store, and removed the items from his pocket just before officers
arrived.

During questioning, the student told officers that he had purchased medicine on his CatCard before. When he couldn’t buy the medicine, he said he thought it would be “cool” to steal the item. The student said he got increasingly angry when the employee put his hands on him.

The student, who officers noted smelled of alcohol, was arrested for shoplifting and minor in possession of alcohol in body and taken to
Pima County Jail.