Police Beat

Joseph Altman Jr.
Arizona Daily Wildcat
January 22, 1996

An associate professor reported receiving a suspicious letter from someone claiming to be a top official with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.
The letter, received by mail Thursday, was titled "Confidential Business Proposal" and asked the recipient to send her bank account information and home telephone and fax numbers so $38.5 million could be deposited into her account.
The letter stated Nigerian officials cannot maintain foreign accounts and he that would therefore use the professor's account, giving the professor 25 percent of the money in exchange.

A student was cited for leaving the scene of an accident Thursday after she allegedly backed into another car at 744 N. Highland Ave. and then drove away.
The driver of a red Volkswagen told police she was driving eastbound in the parking lot when a black Jeep Renegade backed into her car.
The driver of the Jeep allegedly looked back at the Volkswagen's driver, but then fled from the scene. Witnesses saw the Jeep's license plate number and gave it to the Volkswagen's driver.
Police were able to track down the driver because when she hit the Volkswagen, she was backing out of her reserved parking space. Police contacted Parking and Transportation Services, which confirmed the space belonged to a Dayna R. Berns, 19, of the 200 block of North Granada Lane. The vehicle description given by Parking and Transportation also matched that of the suspect vehicle.
Police contacted Berns and asked her to come to the university police station. When she arrived, police saw several small scrapes and one large scrape on the right rear bumper. According to police reports, the right side of the bumper also appeared to be wiped off, even though the rest of the bumper and the car were dirty and covered with several layers of mud.
Berns was cited for leaving the scene of a traffic accident and unsafe backing.

Police received three reports of stolen bicycles Thursday.
The first report was for a $1,500 bicycle that was secured to a parking block between the Modern Languages and Administration buildings from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. The white Barracuda mountain bike was locked to the block through the frame and front tire using a U-lock.
A red Specialized Rockhopper mountain bike reportedly was stolen from a rack north of the Music building, 1017 N. Olive Ave., sometime between 11 a.m. and 2:15 p.m. The bike was locked to the rack with a cable, which also was missing. The value of the bik e was reported to be $900.
A student reported her teal-colored bicycle was stolen sometime during the holiday break. The student said she'd secured the bicycle on the west side of the Modern Languages building, 1423 E. University Blvd., at 2 p.m. Dec. 17. She found the bike missing at noon Thursday. The bicycle's brand and further description were not reported, but it is valued at $130.

Four students were arrested at the Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity house, 1340 E. First St., Thursday night for minor in possession of alcohol.
At 9:35 p.m., an off-duty officer working at a party there saw a man approach the house with an open can of beer. The man later was identified as David A. Kaufman, a 19-year-old resident of Coronado Residence Hall, 822 E. Fifth St.
The officer asked Kaufman for identification, and he produced a California driver's license. A dispatcher ran a computer check of the license, and when it returned "no record found," the officer asked Kaufman if the license was fake, and he said "yes," po lice reports stated.
Police cited Kaufman for minor in possession and possession of a fictitious license. He then was released at the scene. The license was taken into evidence.
Three other students were arrested at 11:50 p.m. when a Pima Community College Department of Public Safety officer saw three females each holding two cans of beer. Only one of the women had a hand stamp allowing her to consume alcohol.
Police then arrested the 19-year-old women, Jamie Jean King, of the 1100 block of North Fifth Avenue, and Kirsten Furlong and Anat Goldman, both of the 1100 block of North Vine Avenue, for minor in possession. They were cited and released at the scene.
Police reports indicate the officer caught King and Goldman in possession of alcohol at the party a second time at about 1 a.m.

A JVC CD stereo faceplate and its case reportedly were taken from a counter in the ASUA Bookstore, 1209 E. University Blvd., Thursday.
The faceplate was left on a counter near the class notes section in the bookstore's basement at about 5:30 p.m. The value of the item is $240.

Police Beat is compiled from official University of Arizona Police Department reports.