Although two assaults and two robberies occurred at the beginning of January, York did not release any security bulletins notifying the community about these incidents.
On January 6, a community member was robbed in a Village residence lobby by two male suspects. Two community members were arrested and charged several days later, according to York’s weekly security incident log.
In a second incident on January 10, Toronto police arrested and charged two community members in relation to a robbery with a weapon, which occurred at the intersection of Pond Road and Sentinel Road.
In addition to the two robberies, on January 8, a community member was assaulted by an unknown male following a dispute over a parking space. Though descriptions of the suspect and his vehicle were taken down, no arrest was made.
In another incident on January 9, Toronto Police responded to an altercation in Curtis Lecture Halls, where a community member sustained an injury to his ear. The investigation is still continuing, according to the security logs. The incidents were considered and reviewed, but did not meet the criteria for security bulletins to be issued, says Joanne Rider of York media.
In order for a security bulletin to be released about an incident, it must have the risk of recurrence and the bulletin must somehow help assist Toronto Police in their investigation.
Because arrests were made for three out of the four incidents, it was concluded that there was no risk of recurrence. However, York media did not provide an answer as to why a security bulletin was not released immediately after the January 6 robbery took place, even though it took several days for the Toronto Police to make arrests, or in the January 8 reported assault, where an arrest has yet to be made.
Some students, both residents and commuters, feel that York should be releasing a bulletin every time a robbery or assault occurs. Darren Gaces, a first-year
physics and astronomy student who lives in residence, believes that students should be notified about these incidents.
“I think we still have a right to know what’s going on and what happened, so we can be more aware,” says Gaces, who thinks York Security should release these bulletins over social media as well.
International student Farouk Wahsh, a first-year engineering major, also agrees students should be notified, stating that security bulletins make students feel safer.
“[Security bulletins] provide people with a sense of security because it shows the university is doing something and responding to an act of violence or a robbery,” says Wahsh.
