Three men were arrested and charged after an investigation found they had unlawfully entered the Old Fine Arts building, Oakley Applied Science and Roy Stewart Stadium and stole items from within.
In an interview with the Murray State Police, one of the men said the three had gone around campus and found entry into buildings by “finding doors which were unlocked.”
The men charged were not Murray State students.
The investigation began with a reported theft of an electric scooter from Station 74, Sept. 10. According to the Kentucky Incident-Based Reporting System, the theft occurred between 4:12 and 5:32 a.m.
According to the report, the theft was picked up by footage, which depicted three white, brown-haired males. One with a tattoo on his right calf, another with a tattoo on his arm. The report stated police began looking into determining “other potential targeted areas as well as the suspects’ point of origin.”
Murray State Police found the same suspects from Station 74 found on security camera footage “in and around multiple other academic and residential buildings” around the early morning of Sept. 10.
After police found multiple items had been stolen from the first floor office of Stewart Stadium, photos were shown to staff members and resulted in the identification of one of the suspects. The suspect identified was Colton W. Smith, nicknamed “Pinky.”
According to the report, Smith said with Murray Police he met with two others, Timothy Gilbert and James Swindle III, at a skate park in Murray around midday, Sept. 9, before the thefts. After that, Smith said the three left from CEV North to a gas station, Cook Out and Taco Bell before eventually going to campus.
“It was found that three suspects had entered unlawfully into the Old Fine Arts, MSU Applied Science (North) and Roy Stewart Stadium (first floor),” the police report read. “(They) stole multiple items from inside of the buildings and at least two electric scooters from other campus locations.”
Smith’s account of events was similar, the police report continued, and confirmed stolen items taken from the stadium as well as the scooters.
According to the report, Smith said the three gained access by trying doors that were unlocked — and jumped the external gate of the stadium field then through the stadium tunnel doors that “cannot be secured properly.”
Smith was arrested on three counts of burglary and booked at the Calloway County Jail.
Later, two officers went to the residence where Swindle and Gilbert were present. With verbal consent, both men allowed officers into the residence. The latter found and collected stolen property, additionally the stolen scooters as well, before placing Swindle and Gilbert under arrest for burglary.
They also provided consistent accounts with Smith and security footage.
“Swindle also admitted to entering buildings on MSU’s campus although he was not able to provide names of the buildings they had entered to due to being unfamiliar with campus … admitted to taking chop sticks out of a classroom that looked like kitchen areas (Applied Science North),” the report read. “Swindle was present with Gilbert and Smith when he reported that Gilbert stole the first scooter from the front bike rack of the Curris Center.”
The report then describes the three stealing another scooter from around Hart Hall before ditching them near Stewart because “it was not working properly.” Inside Stewart, confirming the same method of entry Smith described, Swindle admitted to the thefts of a couple backpacks and other numerous items including $35 dollars from a desk drawer, saying Gilbert had done the same.
According to the report, he had. Gilbert also admitted that this wasn’t the first break-in. He said in the report that he and Swindle entered the stadium the same way on Aug. 13, where amongst the stolen items was a backpack with schoolbooks, which he “discarded” upon returning to a residence.
The case for Smith, Swindle and Gilbert racked up a combined charge of nine counts of burglary, and two counts of theft.
