Police Beat

Tom Collins
Arizona Daily Wildcat
October 25, 1996

University police arrested a man Friday who had escaped from a Florida jail.
Police had been seeking, Matthew M. Stophel, 22, of the 2000 block of East Lee Street, after it had been reported he had been selling stolen textbooks to the UA Associated Students Bookstore.
Plain-clothed police officers stopped Stophel as he went to pick up food stamps. The officers had waited at the Department of Economic Security, 55 N. Sixth Ave. for Stophel to arrive after receiving information that Stophel was in the food stamp program.
Stophel was taken to university police headquarters where, according to police reports, he admitted he had possessed and sold stolen textbooks.
Stophel also admitted leaving a Alachua County Jail workcrew, reports stated.
Stophel was booked into Pima County Jail on charges of trafficking in stolen goods and a $50,000 governor's warrant for his escape from Florida.

An evicted student was sighted Wednesday at 6:45 p.m. in his former residence hall.
A resident assistant called university police when she saw the man at the front desk of Coronado Residence Hall, 822 E. Fifth St.
The student was evicted after allegedly harassing several female residents. The hall director had told the student not to return to the hall again.
The RA said the student left in a black BMW headed north on North Euclid Avenue.
A notice was put out to other officers to issue the student a complaint for criminal trespassing.

A bicycle collided with a truck Wednesday on East Speedway Boulevard near North Mountain Avenue.
A male student was riding his bicycle west on the south sidewalk of Speedway at 2:46 p.m. The student was riding from the sidewalk to the bicycle path when he collided with the truck.
A maroon Jeep pickup truck was pulling out of a service alley 100 feet west of Mountain when the accident occurred.The student suffered minor bruises to his right hand and knee. He was checked by paramedics and released.
No citations were issued, though the report noted the student was not riding far enough to the right.

A wallet was stolen Tuesday from the Franklin building, 1011 E. Fifth St.
A male student told university police he entered a second-floor restroom at 2:15 p.m. He said he placed his backpack on a shelf while he used the facility. The wallet was in his backpack.
The student said he left the restroom with his backpack. He noticed his wallet missing at 2:45 p.m.
The maroon Fossil wallet was valued at $40. It contained several credit cards and identification. It also contained three Tucson Federal Credit Union checks and $6 cash.
The student canceled the checks and credit cards.

Two bicycles were taken from outside the Education building, 1430 E. Second St.
The first was taken Tuesday.
A female student locked her bicycle to a rack on the west side of the building at 9 a.m. She used a U-lock.
When the student returned at 4 p.m., her bicycle and the lock were gone. The Cannondale mountain bicycle was valued at $500 and the U-lock at $32.
A male student secured his bicycle to a rack on the same side of the building Wednesday at 9:52 a.m. He used a cable lock.
When the student returned at 10:50 a.m., the bicycle and lock were gone.
The Royce Breckenridge bicycle was valued at $300 and the lock at $20.

A car was stolen Wednesday from Lot 5065 at East Fourth Street and North Euclid Avenue.
A female employee said she parked her car in the lot at 8 a.m. When she returned at 5 p.m., the car was gone, but one of its windows was lying on the ground.
Police could not find any fingerprints on the window.
The 1986 Buick Electra was valued between $3,000 and $4,000. According to police reports, it contained three pairs of roller blades with a total value of $407, knee, elbow and wrist pads valued at $225, soccer shin guards valued at $49, a pair of Adidas shoes valued at $79, a $130 Zone 1 parking permit and $8 cash. The car also contained a bag of clothes, a sleeping cot and assorted toys of unknown value.
Other university police officers and the Tucson Police Department were informed of the theft.

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