In the past nine months a man not affiliated with Marquette, Anthony R. Stehofsky has reportedly stolen money from vending machines on campus at least 18 times, and the Marquette University Police Department says probably more.
Fueling a suspected heroin addiction according to MUPD Captain Jeff Kranz, Stehofsky is currently being charged with three counts of theft and one of vandalism at the city level; but, if he returns to campus then the MUPD is holding multiple charges open against him.
“He stole 30 bucks here, 20 bucks there, so not major amounts,” MUPD Captain Kranz said.
Stehofsky was stopped last year by MUPD detective Luke Wagner, and was warned to stay away from the machines and campus, but returned this year.
“The subject was interviewed and admitted to multiple thefts and attempted thefts from vending machines over the last year or so,” Wagner said.
Stehofsky found a vulnerability in the vending machines used around campus that allowed him to easily take cash from them.
“We think he was taught by another addict,” Kranz said.
He is known to have removed cash from vending machines in several buildings, including the Dental School, the Alumni Memorial Union, Straz Tower, Cudahy Hall, Schroeder Complex, Lalumiere Hall and Straz Hall.
There was always a delay from when the theft took place until MUPD found out, making it easy for Stehofsky to leave unharmed. “It was hard because we wouldn’t find out until a day or two after the incident, when machine maintenance would report the damage,” Kranz said.
Stehofsky was apprehended April 24. He was also currently on probation and was required to attend scheduled meetings with his probation officer.
“This allowed me to go to one of his scheduled meetings and safely take him into custody without further incident,” MUPD officer Brian Larson said.
One of the ways MUPD was reportedly able to pinpoint Stehofsky was his distinctive Green Bay Packers jersey, which could be seen on security camera tapes as he was committing the crimes.
“It was a department-wide effort, with patrol officers doing a thorough job on initial investigations and communication officers reviewing video,” Wagner said.
Surveillance footage is still being reviewed to see if more charges are applicable.
Stehofsky was interviewed by Wagner and Larson upon arrest. “After approximately three hours of interviews, (Stehofsky) admitted to being involved in all of the vending machine incidents, allowing MUPD to clear a large number of incidents that took place over the last nine months,” Larson said.
