A recent increase in car burglaries in CSUN parking lots from January to March was reported, said Christina Villalobos, CSUN Police Department spokesperson.

Seventeen burglaries were reported to CSUN PD in the past two months, Villalobos said.

During the same time period last year, there were only 10 similar burglaries reported, she said.

Due to an increase in recent car burglaries, CSUN police have asked students, faculty and staff to report any suspicious activity they see.

“We’ll have more officers and we’ll also have bicycle officers patrolling the parking lots,” said Alfredo Fernandez, captain of Parking and Transportation Services.

CSUN PD is planning to implement more officers to squad cars and bicycles, Fernandez said.

About 27 police officers are on duty throughout the day, Villalobos said. During any given, shift four to five officers are on duty, she said.

Smashing the windows of vehicles is the most common way of entry, while others pick car locks or use a tool, Villalobos said.

Police suspect the crimes were committed by groups because of the number and short period of time between burglaries, Villalobos said.

Rebecca Santini, junior philosophy and linguistics major, said she was surprised by the high number of burglaries in the parking lots that have occurred in the last two months.

For the same reason, she said she takes precautions to avoid being victimized.

“I don’t leave valuable property,” Santini said. “If you don’t lock your car, you are just basically asking for it.”

Gabriela Gonzalez can be reached at gabriela.p.gonzalez@csun.edu.