North Face jackets are a must-have this winter, although some wearing the jackets may have acquired them illicitly. This is an example of the increasing number of stolen jackets in the D.C. area, according to an article in The Washington Post.
Crime reports from local law enforcement agencies indicate that North Face jacket robberies occur almost daily, wrote The Post columnist Courtland Milloy.
In 2004, 79 robberies of North Face jackets were reported in Prince George's County in Maryland, a police spokesman said. Last November, there were 33 robberies on Metro trains and buses with eight stolen jackets - all North Face, according to The Post.
The most sought-after North Face jacket is called Steep Tech, which is made for extreme skiing. It sells for about $350, plus tax.
"It's become very popular for walking around," said a North Face customer service representative.
Although jacket theft is a problem in the D.C. area, stolen North Face jackets do not seem to be a big problem on campus. No reports of stolen North Face jackets were made from October 2004 until now, said Public Safety coordinator Leonard Jukkala.
Some students say they will continue to wear their North Face jackets despite the increasing robberies.
"I'm cognizant of my surroundings, but I'm not scared to wear my North Face apparel in any area," said Isaiah Burns, a sophomore in the School of Public Affairs and the Kogod School of Business.
Darryl Jenkins, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, said the threat of theft isn't great enough to cause concern.
"I bought [a North Face jacket] because I liked it. Robberies happen all the time, [and] life is too short for me to walk around worried about it."
In previous winters, jacket thefts occurred the most in common areas such as the library or TDR, said Jukkala, who has worked in Public Safety for more than five years. The best thing to do is to keep your belongings with you, he said.
