Over the past several years, there has been a steady increase in the number of thefts occurring within the Illini Union and its surrounding area, according to reports recorded by University Police.

Joonil Kwak, graduate student, said he recently had his wallet stolen from the recreational room of the Union while playing on the dancing machines.

“I left my things on the couch and figured that there were enough people around here that it would be all right to do so,” Kwak said.

Martin McCrory, desk attendant in the Union recreational room and senior in FAA, said although theft is not something that often happens, it is still a big concern that students should be aware of.

“It is a very big concern especially because all it takes is one careless moment for somebody to leave their stuff on a couch (unattended) . especially if it is on a Friday or Saturday night when a lot of people are coming in and out,” McCrory said.

After trying to review the tape from the security camera at the entrance of the recreational room, a student found out the camera had not been functioning lately.

Ed Slazinik, director of Illini Union, recently learned of the problem and expects it to be fully repaired in about a week.

“We need to replace it with a different type of camera,” Slazinik said. “It is not that the camera is broken but it doesn’t function in (accordance with) the lighting in the billiard room.”

McCrory said two common ways in which things get stolen are when people leave their items unattended on the couches or when they fall asleep on the couches between classes.

“The rec room in general is a very safe place,” McCrory said. “We do have police force and student patrol walk through here on a regular basis so almost always it is a very safe place to hang out.”

Besides the recreational room, Slazinik said students have reported theft in very high traffic areas and not so high traffic areas, where most of the thefts involved students leaving their things unattended. For instance, after a meeting, he saw a backpack unattended for over an hour on the fourth floor of the Union.

He said the Union does not have cameras that are used for surveillance, meaning that there is no one sitting and watching what is being transmitted over the cameras.

“All of our cameras are passive nature in that they record, and if there is an incident, we can go back on the tape and look at that particular incident,” Slazinik said.

Tony Ortiz, officer and crime prevention coordinator for the University Police, said normally, portable things are stolen.

“Criminals can easily snatch like a backpack, which usually has anywhere from expensive books, laptops, wallets, calculators and any other valuable items,” Ortiz said.

He said the chances of recovering stolen items are not very good since it all depends if students can properly identify their stolen processions and how soon they notify the University Police.

To help identify stolen items, students are encouraged to take advantage of the engraver, which assigns serial numbers, from the University Police, according its Web site.

Ortiz said the objective is to “make sure that things are not left unattended for any period of time and to take advantage of the lockers when you temporally go somewhere or study with someone else so they can guard your gear.”