Man refuses to leave ATC Building
On June 22, at 9:10 p.m., Grand Rapids Community College Police Officers Timothy Nelson and Sgt. Jesse Heard was dispatched to the Applied Technology Center on a report of a man trespassing on the second floor. Employees told the officers that the man refused to leave after he was asked to.
Upon arrival, the officers were advised to head to the third floor. Heard and Nelson found the man and asked if he was a student. The man stated that he was not. The officers requested a form of identification, and he provided his Michigan ID without any problems.
He was given a verbal trespassing warning and was advised by the officers that he was not to be on the GRCC campus and blue, yellow and white signs denoted GRCC’s property. The man stated that he understood and left.
GRCC student accused of harassing a woman in M-TEC parking lot
On June 21, at 12:20 p.m., Officers Ryan Ford and Kam Robles were dispatched to GRCC’s M-TEC building on a report that an unknown individual was harassing a student in the parking lot.
When the officers arrived on the scene, they spoke with the individual, who told officers that she was unaffiliated with the college but was present near the building as she was walking her dog and lived nearby. She further explained that she believed a male, who was later identified as a GRCC student, was in a black Lincoln and began to follow and record her in the parking lot attached to the M-TEC building. She had attempted to take a photo of the vehicle and its registration.
She stated that the student became irritated with her behavior and confronted her as he walked toward the main entrance of the M-TEC from his vehicle. The woman explained that he was disrespectful, using derogatory expletives.
Officers Ford and Robles were informed that the GRCC employee who reported the situation had the student in his office for questioning.
The student stated that he was on his lunch break and was walking toward his vehicle from the building when he noticed the lady was walking in the same direction as him. He explained that he was not following or recording her: he simply was browsing his social media on his phone. At some point, he left in his vehicle to pick up food and return to campus. That is when the lady began to take photos of the license plate.
He admitted to becoming irritated and verbally confronting her while he walked back toward the building to return to class. He stated that he regrets the statements he made toward her.
The woman returned to her residence, and the student was instructed to simply return to class and avoid any confrontation then or in the future.
The police report stated that both parties had ample opportunities to disengage and end the conversation.
An unknown female leaves a suspicious envelope at entrance of Spectrum Theater
On June 22, at 12:17 p.m., Officer Robles was dispatched to the Spectrum Theater for a suspicious situation. Dispatch advised that an unknown female left an envelope with a photograph at the southeast entrance to the theater. A theater staff member tried addressing her, but the lady left the area without responding.
Robles arrived on the scene and retrieved the envelope, which was propped up against the entrance. It contained a photograph of an infant and a death certificate. The picture showed a date from 2007. The information on the death certificate was not provided in the report.
Robles contacted the female, who seemed upset when he attempted to speak with her. The surveillance camera showed the female dropping the envelope and leaving the area at 12:11 p.m.
By Blace Carpenter
Man is found sleeping on an air vent between the ATC and Library
On June 14, at 8:52 p.m., GRCC Police were dispatched to the Applied Technology Center, 151 Fountain St NE, for a homeless person sleeping in the bushes near the walkway that connects the ATC to the Library.
When arriving on the scene, police observed a male sleeping next to the library on top of an air vent. The air vent is located in the garden, which is approximately four feet from the ground. Penniman was able to identify the man before waking him. Police asked for his driver’s license or ID The man stated that he did not have one but provided his full name and date of birth.
Dispatch ran the man’s information through the Law Enforcement Information Network (LEIN), and it stated that he had one failure to appear warrant out of the Grand Rapids Police Department. GRCC police requested dispatch to confirm the warrant and find out if Grand Rapids Police would like to lodge the man. Dispatch confirmed the warrant was valid and stated Grand Rapids Police wanted GRCC Police to lodge him.
GRCC PD then told the male to turn around and place his hands behind his back, and he was placed in handcuffs.
Once the man was in custody, he was escorted from the garden bed back to the walkway so he could be searched. The man had two white plastic bags with him and a walker. During the search, he had multiple shirts and jackets on him. No weapons or drug paraphernalia were found. The man did have money on him, which was counted by Officer Tett and placed into the safe. Officer Tett also inventoried all of his property, and placed it in the garage for safekeeping.
Officer Jimenez informed the man that he was warned not to trespass by Officer Stasiak on October 22, 2022. The male was advised that since he had trespassed before, Jimenez cited him with a trespass ticket. The male was transported and lodged at the Kent County Correctional Facility without incident.
Tett placed the man’s money, totaling $83.36, inside an Inmate Cash Envelope.
On June 15, at 5:50 p.m., the man came to GRCC PD to pick up his property. Officer Jimenez retrieved two plastic bags containing property along with the male’s walker. The plastic bags and walker were returned to the man. Officer Penniman retrieved the man’s money from the safe.. The man signed a money receipt stating that he received all of his money.
Woman found sleeping on the third floor of the Student Center.
On June 13, at 3:35 p.m., GRCC police were dispatched to the GRCC Student Center, 122 Lyon St. NE, for a reference call of trespassing. Dispatch advised that a GRCC employee reported that a woman was sleeping on the third floor of the Student Center with no shoes on. Officer Nelson proceeded to the scene.
Upon arrival, GRCC PD proceeded to the third floor of the Student Center and did not locate anyone sleeping. Officers met with the complainant who pointed out that the woman was at the vending machine.
The woman was recognized by Officer Tett from a previous encounter and was identified. The woman entered the restroom, and upon her exit, she was asked if she was a student. She said she was going to be a student but was not yet.
Officer Nelson advised if she was not a student, that she was considered to be trespassing by being in the Student Center. She was informed that the only place she was allowed to be was in the Enrollment Center, if she was attempting to enroll in classes.
The woman was run on through LEIN and was shown to be NIL (no record) for wants and warrants. She was shown to have two mental health injunctive orders.
The woman was given a second verbal warning for trespassing. Officer Nelson advised the woman if she returned to campus, she could be subject to arrest. She was also advised that the Blue, Yellow, and White placard signs denoted GRCC’s campus signs. When asked if she understood, she began to cry. The woman walked southbound on Ransom, and left the GRCC Campus.
By James Herold
Man found trespassing on GRCC campus
On June 13, at 8:54 a.m., GRCC Police were notified that a homeless man was making employees uncomfortable and would not leave the ATC building, room 161.
Upon arriving at the scene, police determined the man had been asking for money and other items from the people in the office and did not seem to be a student at GRCC. After searching the ATC building and finding no one that matched the description of the man, police then went to search GRCC’s Learning Center.
Officers then spotted a man matching the description in the lobby of the LRC, taking food from the food pantry. When contacting the man, the officers asked for his ID, and he responded by saying he was going into the GRCC library. The officers then informed the man that a complaint had been made against him for panhandling and that they would need to see his ID. The man handed the officer his Family Fare ID, and dispatch was unable to find him in the Law Enforcement Information Network.
The officers then asked to see his Michigan Identification Card, and the man handed the officer his driver’s license. Dispatch then advised the man was valid with an officer safety caution (OSC) and mentally unstable. Dispatch also informed the man was not a current student and had been given a trespass warning in Sept. 2021.
They informed the man that he could not be on GRCC property and gave him another trespass warning. The officers escorted him out of the building and advised that he would be arrested if he was reported in another GRCC building.
Police confiscate illegal license plate on car parked in construction zone in ramp A
On June 12, at 10 a.m., the GRCC Police Department was contacted to tow a vehicle parked in a construction zone on Ramp A. Officers met with dispatch, who ran the license plate and was able to find a phone number for the listed owner who reported that he had sold the vehicle to someone back in 2020.
Dispatch was also able to contact the next owner, who also reported selling the vehicle but had no information on the buyer.
While officers tried to figure out who the car belonged to, the facilities manager walked in and reported that the vehicle was a tan 2007 Lincoln sedan and had left at 9:30 a.m.
After talking with the second owner on the phone, it was determined that the car was actually registered to his father with the same first and last name.
The next day, June 13, GRCC PD got a report that a Lincoln was parked in ramp A on level 2. After finding the vehicle, police determined the car was silver but was the same vehicle as the day before. Police advised dispatch to contact the Grand Rapids Police Department so they could impound the car.
After removing the license plate and running the car’s VIN number through LEIN, it was discovered that the car was a 2008 Lincoln and had changed ownership in April of 2023. Also, the vehicle was not owned by any previous owners whom the police had spoken to on the phone.
Police determined the owner of the 2008 Lincoln was not affiliated with the college. Dispatch could not find any other person connected to GRCC or the owner. A note was left on the car indicating that the license plate was taken because it was not transferred properly.
The license plate was destroyed at the GRCC police department, and the owner, who police had spoken to on the phone, was contacted and informed that the car was not his. The license plate was confiscated and thrown away.
By Mackenzie Davis
