Three juveniles received disciplinary action by their high school administration for tampering with four vehicles on campus and stealing one out of the parking structure on Sept. 17, said Los Rios Police Capt. Chris Mora.

The attempted car break-ins took place in Lot F during previous weeks, according to a press release from campus police.
“Crime happens everywhere, it is not solely here,” Mora said. “It is safe, if you look at the different data from the crimes in the neighborhood compared to here, we have very low crime.”

The vehicle stolen from the parking structure was recovered by the Sacramento Police Department, according to a press release on campus.

The vehicle tampering incidents coincided with the recent release of a safety communications tool on campus called SAFE Los Rios. One of the key features of the app includes a panic button where students can directly contact the LRPD.
SAFE Los Rios was developed to replace the campus’s previous safety app, Mora said.

“It keeps the students up to date on anything that might be going on campus safety wise they need to be aware of,” Mora said.

Fiore Tillson, a 21-year-old geology major who rides the bus to campus, said she doesn’t see herself using the app but finds it a helpful resource.

“I think having a tool like that where you can access help from police officers almost instantaneously, given your location, can definitely give someone peace of mind and security,” Tillson said.

Eighteen-year-old biology major Patrick Bernardino drives his car to campus and said hearing about the tampered vehicles made him feel unsafe.

“My car is one of the most valuable things to me because it gets me everywhere,” Bernardino said. “I don’t keep any personal belongings in my car, and I make sure to lock my car five times before walking away.”

Bernardino said he hopes to see more security on campus. “Whenever I come on campus it looks like a dead zone, there’s really no security,” Bernardino said.

The Cosumnes River College campus experienced one motor vehicle theft in 2023 and two motor vehicle thefts in 2022, according to the annual Clery report.

The Clery report is a compilation of crimes that occurred in Los Rios in the last year.
Mora said the cars that were targeted were Kias and Hyundais because of viral TikTok videos showing how to break in and steal the vehicles easily.

Ishwer Pal, a 17-year-old economics major, drives his car to campus and said he thinks checking parking permits will help.

“I feel like they don’t check my parking permit. I see so many cars without it and I feel like I paid for that for no reason,” Pal said. “I hope that security checks that everyone has a permit and that there’s not random people on campus.”

Pal said he makes sure to lock his vehicle every time he parks on campus.
“I feel pretty safe but I can see how others can feel unsafe with car break-ins on campus,” Pal said.