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Friday 18th November 2011 | Volume 76 | Issue 1400 | redbrickpaper.co.uk
'Arts in Wonderland' Redbrick Arts begins its search for University of Birmingham's favourite fictional characters, p18
Selly Oak burglaries rocket by 300%
Vice President Housing and Community warns students to remain vigilant following sharp increase in burglaries and car theft Dominic Jackson Reporter
A recent crime wave has hit the Selly Oak area, with police figures indicating a dramatic 300% increase in the number of burglaries committed during the month of October. The year on year figures also indicate that the incidence of car theft has risen by 28%. It is estimated that a massive three quarters of all these crimes are carried out by opportunistic criminals taking advantage of individuals who fail to secure their property or valuables. Redbrick contacted a number of the students who have been recent victims of burglary in Selly Oak to hear about their experiences. Saul Freedman, a third year Politics student, returned from a night out to discover that thieves had broken into his property via a small first floor window. Valuable electronics were stolen from his room including a laptop, Playstation and BlackBerry mobile phone.
'Students should ensure all doors and windows in their property are locked, avoid displaying valuables in plain sight, walk home from nights out in groups and hide or remove property kept in their cars.' VPHAC Zuki Majuqwana He said, 'When the police came, they told us that they had been in Selly Oak for most of the night, but had gone to Harborne to attend another incident. It is simply not good enough for the safety of students to have just one car out on the streets, when it is well known that a lot of crime goes on around here. I think having a police station in Selly Oak would be a massive deterrent to would-be hoodlums.' During the first week of term Lauren Du Bourg, a third year Chemical Engineering student, had her bike stolen from her garden despite it being chained up and covered in tarpaulin. More recently the property itself was broken into. 'Last week thieves broke into our house after three in the morning and made off with a TV, laptops and some DVDs. It might have been our fault, we had left the back door unlocked.' Zuki Majuqwana, Vice President for Housing and Community, said in an interview with Redbrick, 'Last October there
A warning notice deterring would-be thieves is displayed on Dawlish Road, Selly Oak were 13 burglaries reported, however this October there were 41 such incidents.' He added that the trend may be set to continue into November, 'On the 5th of November alone there were 10 reported incidences of burglary that evening.' Despite the rise in burglaries, Zuki was pleased to point out that Selly Oak has progressively become a safer place in recent years. 'Data for the overall crime rate shows that the number of reported crimes is down on previ-
ous years', but admitted that burglary is the one exception to this trend. He added that the Guild had run a number of successful campaigns in partnership with the local police force to reduce crime over the past few years, with particular mention made of the 'Selly Watch' Guild microsite, which provides information and advice to students about how they can avoid becoming victims of crime. Zuki concluded the interview by offering advice to the student population. 'Keeping it simple, I
recommend that students should ensure all doors and windows in their property are locked. [Students should] avoid displaying valuables in plain sight, walk home from nights out in groups and hide or remove property kept in their cars.' A representative for the West Midlands Police confirmed the increase in the number of burglaries and car thefts. 'There has been a recent rise in the number of house burglaries and car theft‌ we are addressing this issue as a
Millie Guy priority.' The West Midlands Police are now deploying patrols in greater frequency during the evenings when the majority of burglaries and car thefts take place. The number of acquisitive crimes committed typically rise during times of economic difficulties, with Selly Oak traditionally a vulnerable area targetted by criminals due its large student population. For further information on the latest Selly Oak police crime maps, see page four.