Taylor Kopycinski, a senior speech-language pathology major, woke up Friday to find her passenger side door open and all of the lights on in her car. 

“I knew right away when I saw it that someone had tried to break in,” she said.

According to the Fort Worth Police Department website, there have been five vehicle break-ins within a one-mile radius of TCU in the past month.

Kopycinski said she suspected the thieves had been scared off during the break-in, because items had been moved but nothing was taken.

Her vehicle was parked on Lubbock Avenue directly in front of her house, she said. This is the second time someone has targeted her car in that area.

“It is both violating and frightening to think that someone has gone through your things so close to your home,” she said.

Amanda Roberts, a junior supply and value chain management major, said she is still finding glass in her car after her window was shattered more than a month ago. 

Her vehicle was parked on West Cantey Street in front of Sherley Hall, she said. The break-in occurred around 11 p.m. on a Saturday.

Both her car and the car parked behind hers had the driver’s side windows smashed, she said.

“It looked like someone took a bat and hit the window in,” she said. 

For the past several years, Fort Worth has experienced an increase in the number of vehicle break-ins, Sgt. Alvin Allcon of TCU Police said.

Individuals need to be conscious of leaving items in vehicles, he said. Thieves often look for bags or electronics plugged into the accessory jack.  

Historically, the parking lots around the tennis courts and overflow have been hit the hardest, Allcon said.

Roberts said she believed more campus parking could decrease the number of vehicle break-ins in the area.

Unless campus lots were controlled in a way to prevent the general public from entering, more campus lots would probably not decrease vehicle break-ins, Allcon said.