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By Tom Collins
Arizona Daily Wildcat
August 21, 1996
An update of this summer's most unusual crimes:On June 23, a freezer was unplugged in the Veterinary Sciences Building, 1117 E. Lowell St. The freezer contained a sample of human brain tissue valued between $35,000 and $50,000.
The incident was isolated and not a standard crime, said University of Arizona Police Department Acting Lt. Brian Seastone.
Charles R. Sterling, head of the UA Veterinary Sciences Department, said no new information has been uncovered since the incident, but the damage was not done by anybody who works in the building.
"Everybody knows what might be stored there and that it might be valuable," Sterling said.
A dead rattlesnake was found on an employee's chair in the Student Union, 1303 E. University Blvd., June 19.
Daniel Maxwell, director of the Department of Student Programs, was gone from his desk for 45 minutes and returned to find the snake, according to police reports.
It was unknown if the rattlesnake was left as a prank, and no one in the office would admit to the act.
Police reports indicate that later that day, a muffled voice left a voice mail message for Maxwell. The message said, "How was lunch? Sorry I couldn't be in your office when you found the snake to see you scream like a bitch. It was only a joke."
Seastone said pranks such as this one are rare and disturbing. He said the actions may be directed at one person, and can constitute criminal behavior, including harassment.
Maxwell said that there had been no follow-up pranks. He said that the snake smelled of formaldehyde, a biological storage chemical, and appeared to have been taken from a lab.
"The reptile house is closed," Maxwell said.
A female resident of La Paz Residence Hall reported that an unknown man had peered into her shower stall June 14. She saw only the forehead and eye of the man, who left immediately. There were no other witnesses.
On June 19, a different man was seen crouched on his hands and knees in a La Paz shower stall adjacent to one being used by a female student. Another female student found the man, who ran off through the opposite door.
These incidents were striking for two reasons, Seastone said. First, they occurred in the residence halls, where peeping toms are rare, Seastone said. Second, he said they occurred in the same building in the same week, but involved different men.
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