The old adage is “crime never sleeps,” but even crime takes a break when students leave DeKalb. Criminal activity after classes were officially over peaked during finals week with a campus-wide security alert issued on Dec. 11 for an armed robbery.

Lt. Todd Henert of University Police said the victim said someone dressed in all black attempted to rob him at gunpoint between Douglas and Lincoln Hall around 5:55 a.m.

Reportedly, the offender asked the victim to empty his pockets after unveiling a .45-caliber handgun. The victim said he had a brief exchange of words with the offender and returned to his residence hall. Henert said the investigation revealed the report was unfounded.

But even with the vast majority of students at home during winter break, UP officers undergo normal duties, said Lt. Curtis Young, because of the remaining students living in the residence halls. However, the UP receives fewer calls.

“We do have fewer calls usually so we do a lot of in-house training,” Young said.

Some officers undergo training in basic police investigations so that they can conduct investigations from beginning to end. Another group of officers, Young said, were trained in command and general staff.

“It’s best described as working together with other agencies,” Young said. “How to utilize resources in emergency situations.”

Both Henert and Young said the training exercises are integral in maintaining the effectiveness of the officers.

“If you want to be the best, you have to train. You have to train to work as a team to know how to utilize each other’s resources in an effective manner,” Young said.

Even the lieutenants undergo training. Lts. Young, Henert and Darren Mitchell traveled with parking director Kristin Waddell to Nashville, Tenn. for a seminar in executive decision-making. Young said the seminar will involve a lot of practical exercises and scenarios.

For this semester, Young said there will be a drop in event-related crimes because the spring semester has fewer events than the fall semester. Overall, however, he cannot make a prediction in regards to potential crime on campus.

“It’s the nature of our environment. Every year, it’s like getting a whole new city. I can’t make any predictions,” Young said.