Most people return from holiday shopping with more items than they can stuff into a car… Most people return from holiday shopping with more items than they can stuff into a car trunk. But on Wednesday, Nov. 22, Maria Osinski returned from a shopping outing to find that the front door window of her apartment was smashed and her bedroom was in shambles.

Upon entering her room, she found that her computer, iPod and cell phone had been stolen along with her backpack, prescription glasses and numerous clothing items.

“I live on one of the busiest streets in Oakland,” Osinski, a Pitt sophomore and resident of 380 McKee Place, Apartment One, said. “To know that this happened in broad daylight, that’s kind of crazy.”

Osinski’s apartment is one of at least two South Oakland homes that were burglarized over Thanksgiving break. Although Osinski was the only one out of her three other roommates to have items stolen, they all feel as though they have been violated.

“It makes me feel very uneasy, sitting in my house and thinking that strangers had been in here without our permission,” her roommate Alyssa Meisenhelter, a Pitt sophomore, said.

Although Osinski’s apartment appears to have been entered forcibly, Pittsburgh police spokesperson Tammy Ewin advised students to lock their windows and doors in protection against what she termed a “city-wide issue” of increased burglaries.

“Part of the responsibility falls on students,” Ewin said. “We have to rely on folks to not put themselves in a position where they will be a victim.”

Raphi Morey, a Pitt sophomore, has decided to move back into campus housing after his house was broken into for the second time on Friday, Nov. 10. Morey said there was no evidence of forced entry, so he and his roommates suspect that someone with a key stole four computers, a PlayStation and some jewelry from their house at 39 Lawn St.

“It does feel a lot safer to live on campus,” Morey said. His roommate, Sere Altebranbo said she has also decided to relocate to the North Side because she no longer feels safe.

Both burglaries are being investigated by city police, but no suspects have been arrested. Osinski said this experience has been an “eye-opener” and hopes that other students will learn from it as well.

“Everybody just needs to be real careful,” she said. “It’s really unfortunate that this happened, but in reality, I couldn’t have done anything to prevent it.”

Editor’s Note: Maria Osinski is an account manager at The Pitt News.