No arrests have been made in connection with a burglary that recently took place at the Stellenbosch University (SU) journalism department.
This was according to Sgt Jason Rhoda from Stellenbosch South African Police Service (SAPS). The burglary occurred at 05:53 on 21 August, according to security camera footage of the scene. The two alleged suspects broke the glass of a revolving door on the side of the building in order to access the department, according to Elizabeth Newman, administrative officer for the journalism department.
The Stellenbosch University journalism department was broken into at 05:53 on 21 August. The suspects broke the glass of a revolving door in order to enter the building, according to Elizabeth Newman, administrative officer for the journalism department. PHOTO: Tamsin Metelerkamp
“From what [Campus Security] said to us, it was two youths who broke the revolving door, and then just grabbed something from behind the door and left,” said Newman.
The burglary was discovered around 08:00 the same morning when Caitlin Maledo, an honours journalism student at SU, arrived at the department to work on an assignment.
The only item that was stolen during the break-in to the Stellenbosch University (SU) journalism department on 20 August was a longboard belonging to a journalism student, according to Caitlin Maledo, an honours journalism student at SU who was first on the scene. PHOTO: Tamsin Metelerkamp
“I walked into the department, disarmed the alarm…so everything was normal,” said Maledo. “I saw all the scattered glass. There wasn’t a lot, but I saw scattered glass there. [I] still thought that I’m not going to carry on through, because whoever broke in could still be inside.”
Maledo told MatieMedia that she immediately notified Dr Marenet Jordaan, the course convener for the honours journalism class, of the break-in. Members of SU Campus Security and SAPS arrived on the scene shortly afterwards, said Maledo.
Members of Stellenbosch University Campus Security and Stellenbosch South African Police Service arrived on the scene of a burglary at the Stellenbosch University journalism department around 08:30 on 20 August. This was according to Caitlin Maledo, an honours journalism student at SU who was first on the scene. PHOTO: Tamsin Metelerkamp
“The police wanted me to walk around, to see if anything had been stolen. At first glance, it looked like everything was in place. So, the computers and all of that, it doesn’t look like anything was touched,” said Maledo. “As far as I’m aware, […] nothing in the building was taken except for a longboard belonging to a student of the department.”
Campus Security is supporting SAPS in their investigation by providing video footage of the incident, according to Martin Viljoen, spokesperson for SU.
“The incident was reported to Campus Security and a criminal case was laid with the local SAPS,” said Viljoen in email correspondence with MatieMedia.
Stellenbosch University (SU) Campus Security is assisting Stellenbosch South African Police Service with their investigation into the break-in at the SU journalism department on 21 August, according to Martin Viljoen, spokesperson of the university. PHOTO: Tamsin Metelerkamp
Although SU has experienced a downward trend in criminal incidents over the last few years, the fact that the university has an open campus intertwined with the Stellenbosch central business district continues to pose unique challenges, according to Viljoen.
This is the second break-in that the journalism department has experienced in the last 18 months. The previous incident occurred on 31 July 2020, according to a MatieMedia article by Byron Latham.
The safety of students and staff remains a primary concern for Stellenbosch University (SU), according to Martin Viljoen, spokesperson for SU. Viljoen told MatieMedia that “millions have been spent on safety and security measures [at SU] over the last few years, while safety and security arrangements are reviewed continuously”. PHOTO: Tamsin Metelerkamp