University Police arrested a man on campus last week who was wanted for parole violation. He has also been arrested in the past on campus for burglary.
According to a police report, an officer recognized Michael Dean Waller walking outside the Law School building May 7. The officer arrested Waller after discovering a warrant was out for his arrest.
University Police Sgt. Joe May has arrested Waller before. “We’ve caught him around campus a few times,” May said. “We think he likes coming back to the University because there is a lot for him to steal and he can get drugs close to here.”
The report stated Waller claimed he had been stealing up to $200 a day to support a cocaine and heroin habit. He has been arrested at the University twice for burglary, as well as disorderly conduct and lurking with the intent to rob.
Police said they believe Waller, who is not a University student or employee, was involved in as many as 12 recent thefts at the University. “It’s because of his style,” May said. “We’ve had several thefts that occurred the same way, which lead us to believe it might be him.”
May said Waller usually steals small items like portable CD players that he can quickly exchange for drugs.
But police said it is unlikely Waller will be charged with the thefts because of a lack of hard evidence.
May also said that Waller will now be put away for a while because of parole violations.
“But he’ll be back,” May said. “He has said that he likes the University.”
In other police news:
ù An officer struggled with a man outside University Hospital on Monday night.
According to a police report, Officer Octavio Reyes Jr. noticed Chandler Sterling Sims acting suspiciously near a bike rack by the hospital. When Reyes tried to talk to him, Sims became hostile and started yelling.
Sims resisted arrest and Reyes sprayed him with chemical mace.
Sims, who is not a University student, was cited for lurking with the intent to commit a crime and resisting arrest. He has had run-ins with University Police in the past. He was caught in possession of an illegal, concealed knife in 1992 and charged with a minor assault near campus in 1990. He was also cited last month for lurking with the intent to commit a crime.
ù Members of the Minneapolis Fire Department and University Police worked together to help a juvenile who had injured herself Thursday on the bank of the Mississippi River near Comstock Hall.
According to a police report, officers responded to a call for help and within minutes they were talking to witnesses to find out what had happened.
Rescue workers took the victim, who is not a University student, to Hennepin County Medical Center. Details of her injuries were not available.
There were four other people in the group by the river, none of whom are University students; two received citations for underage drinking.
ù University Police responded to a call of a possible kidnapping Thursday.
According to a police report, witnesses said they saw a person being dragged into a car, which then sped off.
They phoned police who immediately sent out squad cars to check the area. University officers also notified Minneapolis Police and the State Patrol to watch for the car.
But there was no kidnapping — only movie-making.
Witnesses told police the car’s license plate number. A dispatcher then called the car’s owner, who said the incident was part of a movie project that some students were working on and the kidnapping was a scene in the film. Police then called off the search.
ù A woman fled University Police early Saturday after they tried to pull her over for reckless driving in Stadium Village.
According to a police report, after seeing the officers, she jumped from her truck and ran.
Police were unable to catch the woman, but impounded the truck. They are still investigating.