By Jamie Miller, Kyle Jackson and Ari’ Browley
Trouble with man at South Commons
On Thursday, Aug. 20 at 8:18 a.m., an officer was dispatched to a report of a student having an issue with a possible unhoused person. The officer took the student into an interview room, where the student told the officer that she was walking around the Bostwick Commons and, when she was on the South end, a man who appeared homeless made an obscene gesture in her direction before continuing on his way. The woman stated she had never seen the man before, and the officer was unable to locate him.
GRCC dumpster damaged
On Monday, Aug. 24, at 8:32 a.m., an officer was dispatched to Winchester Alley regarding a report of property destruction. Upon arrival, the officer was able to locate two separate dumpsters that appeared to have fresh graffiti on them. The first dumpster was located outside door six of Raleigh J. Finkelstein Hall, and the second was near door five of the same building. The graffiti consisted of the word “tape” which had been spray-painted on the dumpsters. The officer was later able to contact a Grand Rapids Community College employee about the damage. The employee told the officer that the graffiti was not present when he left the building on Saturday, Aug. 22, at 2 p.m., and that when he returned the next day at 10 a.m., the graffiti was there. The officer would check the Verkada camera system, and at 4:46 p.m. on Saturday, a figure can be seen walking up to the door six dumpster, and he appears to bend towards the dumpster to do something before rising and heading over to the second dumpster, where he would reach into his right cargo pocket and produce what appeared to be a paint marker. He then paused and turned 360 degrees, as if checking to see if anyone was watching, before moving to the south side of the dumpster and out of sight. The suspect is described as a white male with a beard. At the time of the crime, he was wearing a dark-colored baseball hat with a white logo on it, a green camouflage shirt with an orange design on the front and back, black cargo pants, black socks, black shoes, and a black backpack.
Property damaged at Cook Hall
On Monday, Aug. 24, at 11 a.m., officers were attempting to block foot traffic for a Gordon Food’s semi-truck to back up to a loading dock. While backing up, the semi jackknifed, and the top front passenger side of the trailer bumped into the canopy cover of the tower stairwell of Cook Hall, breaking a wood panel and scraping two other panels. A GRCC employee estimated the damages to be $5,000, while the truck appeared to be undamaged. The officers offered the man the police report number, but the driver said he did not need it.
Trash cans damaged at Bostwick Commons
On Monday, Aug. 24, at 12:44 p.m., an officer was dispatched to Bostwick Commons after being told that two trash cans were coming loose. Upon arrival, the officer located the two trash cans. One was to the left of RJF Hall’s main entrance, with the mounting hardware coming loose from the brick sidewalk, and the other, located on the South Commons, was also coming loose at the base. The price for repairs is estimated to be $200.
Domestic Disturbance at Sneden Hall
On Tuesday, Aug. 25, at 9 a.m., two officers were dispatched to the bus stop at Sneden Hall on report of an assault. The caller said that a man had just pushed a woman to the ground. Upon arrival, the officers made contact with the couple. The woman told the officers that the two were walking to the man’s probation appointment at the 63rd District Court, and that the man was upset about being late due to taking the wrong bus. The two were arguing because the man felt like she took too long getting to the bus. The woman further told the officers that she had been in pain due to period cramps and couldn’t keep walking, so she hunched down and lowered herself to the curb due to the said pain. The woman was adamant that the man had not touched or pushed her and showed the officers her forearms to show there were no marks and she had not been touched or shoved. The man told a similar story, claiming he never pushed her and that the confusion likely came from him yelling as she sat on the ground. The officers also spoke with the caller, who stated she had not seen the man strike or shove the woman. A search of the Verkada cameras in the area also found no footage of the incident. As a result, officers took no action, and the couple left together after the woman told officers she was comfortable doing so.
Graffiti found in Student Center men’s bathroom
On Tuesday, Aug. 25, at 12:30 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the GRCC Student Center on a report of graffiti on the walls of the men’s restroom. The officer checked all three floors’ bathrooms, but was unable to find any graffiti. The officer then met with a GRCC custodian who told him that they had been able to clean most of the graffiti off and that it had likely been done with a wax marker or shoe shine wax. The officer then met with the employee who reported the graffiti, and the man showed him a picture of the graffiti, which consisted of a face drawn on the brick wall of the handicap stall. He informed the officer that the graffiti had first been found the previous day. In addition, graffiti on the third floor, and that earlier Tuesday, Aug. 25, at 7 a.m., they had found yet more graffiti in the form of the word “yung” written in wax marker in the second-floor men’s restroom. All graffiti was cleaned off by GRCC employees, and there are no suspects at this time.
Hit-and-run reported at Parking Ramp B
On Tuesday, Aug. 25, at 4:40 p.m., an officer made contact with a student regarding a hit-and-run that had occurred the previous day at 12:39 p.m. The student showed the officer footage from the camera system on her Tesla, which showed a Kia striking the vehicle, with the Kia’s front passenger side hitting the front driver’s side of the Tesla. The student also viewed the driver get out and examine the damage on her car soon after driving away. Through use of the Verkada camera system, the officer was able to locate the Kia’s license plate and contact the driver via phone. The Kia driver, who was also a student, appeared nervous and apprehensive. The officer advised her that leaving the scene without reporting the accident was a serious matter. The officer told the student that while the complainant would not be pursuing criminal charges, he would be referring this incident to Student Conduct for review.
Gate runner at Parking Ramp A
On Wednesday, Aug. 26, at 10:42 a.m., an officer was advised of a gate running incident on the fifth level exit of Parking Ramp A. Through security footage, the officer was able to locate a silver Honda Fit leaving through the exit with a blue Ford F-150, a red Honda Pilot, and a grey Ford Edge following the Fit out without paying. The officer was first able to contact the driver of the F-150, who was a GRCC student. The driver told the officer that he had used his RaiderCard to enter the ramp but had lost it. The officer advised the man that there is a $20 gate runner fee and a form he needed to fill out, which the man said he could do the next day, and the officer gave him a week to do so. Next, the officer contacted the driver of the Pilot. The driver stated that he had dropped his son off and that he could not find a pay station, so he ran the gate. The driver told the officer that he would be able to pay the fee that day and did so later on in the cashier’s office. The officer was unable to get a hold of the driver of the Edge, as when the officer attempted a phone call, she just got a message that the line was busy and it would not let her leave a voicemail. The officer was unable to confirm who the driver was or if they were associated with GRCC.
Mystery packages arrive on faculty member’s doorstep
On Friday, Aug. 28, the Grand Rapids Community College Police Department contacted a faculty member about a mysterious package that was delivered to their residence in Byron Center on Aug. 21. The faculty member explained that they had reserved a package containing a silver amulet, not to be mistaken for a dream catcher. The box had the address written in black marker and no return address. When the GRCCPD asked the faculty member what they did with it, they explained that they threw it away. The same day GRCCPD contacted the faculty member, another package with identical circumstances was being delivered by USPS. The Police did not provide more information on this case.
Multi-tool turned in to music building staff
On Friday, Aug. 28, GRCCPD was dispatched to the Grand Rapids Community College Music Building on reports of a multi-tool being turned in to staff. GRCC employee Donovan Rose stated that the tool was given to a student by their friend. The student turned in the item. It was later explained that the friend was picked up by their mother the day before for mental health treatment. GRCCPD later contacted the student via phone.
When GRCCPD asked the student about what happened, they explained that both she and the prior student were sitting in Quiet Cafe the day before when her friend started talking about her depression and what sounded like suicidal talk. The student asked her friend to stop talking about it and promptly contacted her mother to have her taken for mental health treatment. The student explained that no plans were made for suicide. The friend gave the student her multi-tool so she would not engage in self-harm.
The student did contact the friend, stating that she didn’t want to be friends anymore after previous boundaries were crossed, leading to the student blocking her. The student told GRCCPD that she didn’t want them to contact the friend on her behalf.
Graffiti cleaned before police arrived on scene
On Friday, Aug. 28, GRCCPD was dispatched to the Northwest stairwell of Parking Ramp B to investigate graffiti on the glass. When the officer arrived, the graffiti had already been cleaned, leaving faded marks where the spray paint once was.
Bike stolen from Student Center
On Monday, Aug. 31, GRCCPD was instructed to investigate a stolen bike from the Student Center building. When talking with the victim, they explained that on Friday, Aug. 28, they had locked their bike outside of the entrance to Student Life while they went to purchase a laptop computer from the bookstore. The victim described the bike as a red “Giant” brand mountain bicycle with an “up cycle” sticker on the center frame and a welded-on luggage carrier.
GRCCPD checked the Verdarka cameras in the surrounding area to see if they could find the thief. The victim was never seen securing his bike on the cameras, but was spotted entering the fitness center multiple times.
Bathroom stalls vandalized
On Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026, at 6:31 a.m., an officer was dispatched to a damage-to-property report at the Student Center. An email was also sent to GRCCPD the previous night regarding graffiti in the second-floor men’s bathroom. The responding officer made contact with the complainant, and they explained that they discovered the graffiti the day before around 5 p.m., noting that it would be the third time that the bathroom was vandalized.
Three different stalls were vandalized in the men’s bathroom. The officer attempted, but was unable to identify the suspect through camera surveillance.
Hit-and-Run in Parking Ramp A
On Tuesday, Sept. 1, 2026, at 12:11 p.m., an officer made contact with a student in reference to a hit-and-run report that occurred in Parking Ramp A earlier in the day. When the officer spoke with the complainant, they explained that their 2018 Tesla was hit in the parking lot. When the officer asked, the complainant confirmed that they received a notification about the accident at 9:50 a.m. and proceeded to show the officer the footage. The officer was able to view a small blue Toyota SUV making contact with the Tesla as it pulled into the parking space next to it. When the Toyota backed up after the hit, the officer was able to see the suspect wearing sunglasses and a hoodie with a shocked expression. The officer could also see a white paint transfer from the Tesla on the front of the SUV. The complainant also advised that their brother saw the suspect parked on a different level after the accident occurred.
When the officer obtained the video, they saw that the suspect attempted an ‘incorrect traffic flow,’ meaning they accessed the parking space from the wrong direction. The officer photographed and reported the damage to the Tesla.
The officer found the suspected vehicle on level four of Parking Ramp A, where it was still running but locked. They were advised by dispatch that the suspected driver was a student whose class ended about five minutes earlier. The officer waited until the student showed up on scene, in the meantime photographing the damage to the Toyota.
When the student showed up, she asked the officer if everything was okay. The officer asked her if she had trouble parking earlier, and the student said she was late to class and didn’t know what to do. The officer explained to the student that the Tesla has cameras, and they captured her hitting the vehicle and leaving. The officer then asked for the student’s information, providing them with the accident number along with the officer’s information. The student further apologized for not leaving a note after hitting the vehicle.
Damage to vehicle in Parking Ramp A
On Tuesday, Sept. 1, at approximately 3:21 p.m., a GRCC employee went to the GRCC Police Department to file a complaint regarding her vehicle being damaged in Parking Ramp A. An officer made contact with the complainant in the lobby. She explained to the officer that her 2017 Subaru was damaged in the parking ramp, and she had no idea how it occurred. The complainant further explained that on Aug. 18, at approximately 8 a.m., she parked her car in Parking Ramp A. She advised that her vehicle was not damaged when she parked it. On the same day, around 5 p.m., she went back to her vehicle, and she noticed the dent on the driver’s side door. The officer requested that the complainant guide them to the vehicle to look at the damage.
When viewing the damage, the officer saw a softball-sized dent near the bottom of the driver’s side door. The officer did not notice a paint transfer, but advised the complainant that the damage would be reported. The officer also photographed the damage; however, there was no camera where the complainant parked.
Graffiti in ATC bathroom
On Tuesday, Sept. 1 at 9:21 p.m., an officer was dispatched to the second-floor men’s bathroom of the Applied Technology Center on a report of graffiti. Upon arrival, the officer met with two GRCC employees who showed him the graffiti. The graffiti was located on the brick wall next to the toilet in the bathroom’s only stall. One of the employees told the officer that the last time he checked the bathroom was earlier that day at 4 p.m., and there was no graffiti present. The graffiti, which consisted of a stylized cartoon face done with a wax marker, was noted by the officer to resemble graffiti from a previous report. The employees told the officer that they would clean the graffiti and inform officers if they had any trouble removing it.
