By Link Johnson
The Scene staff
Campus police responded to a call about a missing cell phone in the Highlander Lounge on Wednesday, and a student then found the phone in the parking lot.
Aaron Dlamini, 20, nursing, was with friends in the lounge between 1 and 2 p.m when his iPhone came up missing.
“We weren’t there when it was taken, but we were there when it got back,” said Chief Richard Banahan of the Forest Park Campus Police department, who accompanied Officer Terri Buford to the Highlander Lounge.
Buford pulled witnesses to the side one at a time for questioning. The suspect fled the lounge undetected but left the phone on top of a car in the parking lot. A fellow student found the phone and returned it to Dlamini within the hour.
The phone was plugged in and charging when it was taken. Dlamini had walked away momentarily and couldn’t find his phone. “I walked off for about two minutes,” he said. He noticed the phone was missing when he didn’t hear an expected text message alert.
He began to look for his phone, asked people if they saw anything and called St. Louis Metropolitan Police. “I called the police and they said they would track it,” he said. St. Louis police called the campus police, who responded shortly.
Dlamini said he was pleased with how efficiently the campus police handled the case and that he wouldn’t leave anything unattended anymore.
“That man was lucky to get his stuff back,” said Banahan, “Even when you’re standing next to it, you have to be aware of your surroundings and things around you.”
Banahan said he was glad to see someone return the phone but that police will continue to investigate.
Students at the scene said they wouldn’t leave things unattended on campus even for just a second or two. Alizee’ Dixon, 18, general transfer, said, “If I ain’t around, nobody that I know that’s going to watch it. I ain’t putting it down nowhere.”
Madia Weedee, 19, nursing, expressed how she feels about students stealing other students’ property. “Get your life together,’ she said. “Save your money, get your own phone.”
Maria Campos, 19, pre-law, said she wouldn’t be for or against more security on campus but thinks people should still be mindful that issues will arise. “We have to be aware that there is thievery and things being stolen on campus — really be aware,” she said.