Nearly half of the total copies of last week’s Mustang Daily disappeared from bins throughout campus over the weekend. By Monday, nearly all 34 bins were completely empty.
The editors, noticing the sudden disappearance, contacted the University Police Department (UPD) to take further action. The police are currently investigating the incident and searching for suspects.
“I think more than anything, it’s a disappointment for us as editors because we put so much time and effort into the paper every week,” said Emily Rancer, editor in chief of the Mustang Daily. “For one person to just steal them all is robbing the student body of news they would otherwise know about.”
The cost to print the 3,000 copies of the July 13 to 19 issue of the Mustang Daily, in which seven advertisements were featured, was about $350. An estimated 1,500 newspapers were stolen.
“This is not the first time that portions of the publication have disappeared,” said George Ramos, adviser to the summer Mustang Daily and journalism department head. “I just hope this was not an intentional act. If someone did take the paper, I would expect campus authorities to act accordingly.”
In response to the incident, the Daily’s policy has now been altered. Though it will remain a free publication, taking additional copies of the paper are subject to a 50-cent fee per issue.
The current whereabouts of the newspapers are unknown.
If any further information can be provided, please contact the UPD at 756-2281.