Textbook thefts prompt warning to UD students

Stolen textbooks and reports of “unauthorized individuals buying books on campus” prompted the UD Department of Public Safety to warn students Wednesday night.

Already, one person has been arrested and the investigation is continuing, Rodney Chatman, executive director of public safety and chief of police, said in a prepared statement.

There have been no details released about the arrest or the number of textbooks reported to have been stolen.

“This sort of behavior typically escalates at the end of the academic year and includes companies coming to campus without permission to buy textbooks, or hiring students to represent them,” the chief said in the statement.

This is final exams week at UD. Commencement exercises are Saturday for spring graduate and doctoral students and Sunday for spring undergraduates.

The UD Bookstore is the only place on campus authorized to sell or buy back textbooks, Chatman said in the statement.

He also noted in the statement that companies and individuals conducting business on campus property without written permission will be escorted from campus and are potentially subject to enforcement action. Students and employees are subject to university sanctions for similar offenses.

Students or anyone affiliated with the university contacted by someone soliciting to sell textbooks is asked to contact the Department of Public Safety dispatcher immediately at 937-229-2121.