A 24-year-old man was arrested in the residence hall parking lot for possession of an amphetamine on Jan. 24.

Campus police stopped Jimmy Ascevedo outside Sierra Hall for expired license tags. A check revealed Ascevedo was on parole for a narcotics violation.

Police searched Ascevedo’s vehicle and found .05 grams of crack cocaine and a glass blown pipe inside an eyeglass case in Ascevedo’s backpack, the police report said.Ascevedo was taken and booked into Sacramento County Jail on Jan. 24.

Sacramento State Police Public Information Officer John Hamrick said the amount of crack Ascevedo was in possession of was probably for personal use.

“The suspect was most likely going to break into a car to steal something or he was casing the parking lot to steal a vehicle, probably to support his drug habit, considering he had no business in the parking lot, because he is not a student,” Hamrick said.

Ascevedo was released from jail late last week and is awaiting a decision from the District Attorney’s Office on prosecution, Hamrick said.

Serious drug addicts need money and auto theft can be a way for them to get it, said Dr. William Vizard, Chair of the Department of Criminal Justice. But in most cases an automobile is stolen so the suspect can go on a joy ride and abandon the car, Vizard said.

“Campus car theft is always a problem. Whether the stolen cars are stripped for parts or for smuggling, it is a way for serious addicts to get money,” Vizard said.

According to statistics issued by the public safety office in 2001, 33 cars were stolen from campus and five drug violations occurred on campus.

It seems that the nicer a car is, the more likely it is to be stolen. “I’m always cautious about my car, there is always a profit off of parts they can take from a car, especially with body kits and performance parts,” said freshman Ron Cadiz, who drives a Toyota Integra.

“The moral of the story is to drive a car that nobody else would want to steal like a five year old Ford Taurus station wagon,” said Vizard.