Weapons violations and vandalism doubled on university campuses in Southern Nevada in the past year, according to Arnold Vasquez, the director of University Police Services in the Southern command.
Vasquez presented a bar graph of crime statistics in 2023 compared with 2024 to the security committee of the Nevada Board of Regents on Thursday. The total events increased to 43,621 in 2024 from 42,031 in 2023. In total, campuses had 1,631 instances of crime last year.
Vasquez also pointed out that officer-initiated activities increased to 37,218 in 2024, up from 33,490 the previous year, stating that some of the higher numbers of incidents were the result of a more proactive approach by the police officers.
“With more productivity coupled with the implementation of our newly formed cops unit, we expect to see initially a spike in these statistical areas,” Vasquez said.
Vasquez said he expected the numbers to go back down in the future.
Trespass incidents also increased by 14 percent, to 202 from 177, Vasquez said.
Theft, which Vasquez said is mainly scooters and bicycles, remained steady at 267.
Battery, burglary and narcotics incidents all declined, according to the graph.
Regent Heather Brown thanked Vasquez for his work in changing the culture in the department. He has served as interim chief since August 2024 and was appointed in the permanent position on Saturday.
The former head of University Police Services, Adam Garcia, retired in July. A lawsuit filed by Lt. Antonia Summerlin accuses Garcia of fostering a culture of bullying in the department.
Professors call for increased security
Before Vasquez’ presentation, UNLV professors Bill Robinson and Doug Unger called for increased security on campuses, and said it was long overdue.
“We’ve been asking for security upgrades on campus for 25 years. That horrible day was a terrible reminder of the fact that we’ve been ignored for 25 years,” Robinson said, referring to the Dec. 6, 2023, shooting on UNLV’s campus that killed three professors.
Unger, who is president of the Nevada Faculty Alliance, sought support from the regents in asking the legislature for safety funding requests.
Contact Katie Futterman at kfutterman@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ktfutts on X and @katiefutterman.bsky.social.
