Jonny Gross

iPhones have been stolen. Wallets have been ravaged and backpacks have been snatched. The turf field has been infiltrated by unwanted visitors; to put it bluntly, disaster has struck Latin. Now, some people might argue that I am blowing this out of proportion, but I beg to differ; a dire and dangerous state of emergency is at our hands.

Although I have not witnessed a thief in action, I went by the turf field during an exciting Latin vs. Parker soccer game, and happened to notice a handful of security guards roaming the perimeter of the field. It struck me that this was an attempt to keep the thieves away—I had to probe the security guards for news about the whereabouts of such criminals, and the tactics that they have been employing in order to counter them.

My worries were justified when I spoke to Mr. Joan Guzman, Latin’s head of security. “There is a gang that lingers by the turf during practices; they have three on foot and others on bikes. They target Latin students and other social clubs. When we leave bags, wallets, laptops, or cellphones unattended, a gang member on foot snatches it and tosses it to one on the bike so that he will not get caught.” When asked what the security guards are doing to deter such criminals, Guzman answered, “We have staff out there, we have notified the coaches and Mr. Bauer, and have been working closely with CPD to have more of a security presence by the practice fields.”

As you can see, the danger at hand is extreme; the thieves lurking by the turf are experienced criminals. So I implore you, be aware of your surroundings when venturing near ‘the field of dangers’ if you will. Here are a few suggestions as to how to protect yourself:

1. Keep your backpack sealed to prevent surreptitious thievery

2. Store your wallet and phone at the bottom of your backpack, to make it harder for the thief to obtain.

3. If the thief does grab your backpack and attempt to strip it from you, begin to punch and kick at him aimlessly.

4. Upon injuring the thief, run away.

5. If you are unable to execute these defense mechanisms, hire a personal body guard to accompany you at all times.

Although it is important to be able to protect yourself, our highly trained security guards, led by Mr. Guzman, are able to keep us safe.