Police cross paths with mysterious secret society

Last Wednesday, UW-Eau Claire campus police investigated three suspicious persons in McPhee Center after they were reported being seen searching through lockers.

At about 8:50 a.m. an officer was assigned to investigate a suspicious person reported in McPhee. The officer spoke with the complainant who was a sports facility manager.

The manager told police that at about 8:30 a.m. that morning, the custodial staff walked into the men’s general locker room and found three students going through lockers.

Custodial staff radioed the manager, who then responded to the area. He spoke to the three students who identified themselves with photo I.D.

They explained they were doing a secret social society project and were not attempting to steal anything. The complainant said the students were cooperative and did not appear to have anything on them that may have been stolen.

He felt the incident should be reported to police, given the number of thefts that have occurred within the building.

The officer attempted to contact all three students and was eventually able to reach two of the students, who agreed to meet with him. One was said to have class.

According to the report, at around 1:55 p.m. the officer met with the subjects who explained the three of them were part of a scavenger hunt put on by the secret society they are members of. Apparently, there was a shape cut into a piece of paper in one of the empty lockers.

Had they found the paper, they would have been given leniency on their hell week.

Both subjects refused to identify the secret society they belonged to as it was secret and had been in existence on campus since 1972.

One subject told police he had become a part of the society by responding to a flyer whereas the other subject became part of the group through word of mouth. They assured the officer the group does not participate or condone any kind of illegal activity.

The subjects understood how their activity did not look innocent to someone viewing it from outside their society. They agreed to evaluate their future projects from this perspective.

Why’s that window open?

A student chose to enter the Eau Claire County Diversion Program last Monday after being caught with over $200 worth of marijuana, paraphernalia and alcohol.

At around 10:24 p.m. campus police were dispatched to a drug case in Horan Hall.

Upon arrival, officers made contact with the complainant who told officers he detected the odor of marijuana while conducting rounds, pointing officers in the direction of the scent to investigate.

Campus police went to the floor in question and detected the odor of marijuana in the hallway, pinpointing the room it was coming from. The officer could detect the odor of marijuana around the door frame and also felt a draft.

The officers knocked on the door to the room and heard someone approach the door but no one answered. The officer knocked a second time and a male subject opened the door, who notified the officer he lived in the room.

When the officer asked for consent to enter the room, the subject stated “sure” and walked into the room, leaving the door open behind him.

Once inside the room, the officer observed another male subject who told him he also lived within the room. He could detect the odor of marijuana and observed the window was wide open.

The officer explained to the subjects he had received a complaint about the odor of marijuana coming from their room and was requesting honesty and cooperation. According to the report, one subject nodded his head.

Campus police asked the subjects if they had recently smoked marijuana within the room, and both roommates said they had not.

The officer asked the subjects if they had smoked marijuana elsewhere tonight. One subject stated he had smoked marijuana inside his vehicle approximately an hour to hour and a half ago. The other stated he had not.

According to the report, he did not seem to be under the influence of marijuana.

The subject who had recently smoked told the officer he did not have any marijuana or paraphernalia inside the room. After being asked a second time, he told the officer he had a “one-hitter” inside the room.

Upon the officer’s request, the subject opened the top drawer of his dresser to remove the drugs and paraphernalia. He removed a plastic tupperware container that contained a gold metal grinder, a multi-colored dug out and two one-hitters.

Officers also observed a small plastic baggie with small green plant material, which the officer recognized as “marijuana shake.” The subject also removed the alcohol inside the drawer.

The officer asked the subject if he had any other illegal items within the room, to which he stated he did not. After asking the subject for consent to search his belongings, the subject asked if he needed to give the officer permission.

Campus police notified the subject that he did not need to give consent and he was simply asking for it. The officer told the subject he had already been provided with illegal items but was simply requesting consent to remove any other illegal items that he had in his room to avoid further complaints and to verify his claims.

The subject then advised the officer he did have marijuana in the room and opened the top drawer on his desk, removing a glass jar filled with green plant material.

The officer observed three small baggies in the glass jar containing green plant material. He asked the subject if he was selling marijuana and the subject replied he was not selling it, however he stated that some of his friends purchased marijuana with him.

He told police he purchased the marijuana earlier that day from an off campus address for $200.

During the officer’s search of the remainder of the subjects belongings, he located a digital scale in the top dresser drawer and a homemade “blow-tube” made from an empty Aquafina bottle and dryer sheets.

The officer also located more alcohol in the dresser and in a bag near the subject’s dresser.

The subject told the officer he had not had contact with police before for drug use and agreed to enter the Eau Claire County Diversion Program.

Before leaving, the officer had the subject dispose of the alcohol in the custodial closet in his presence. The subject disposed of an approximately one tenth full bottle of Rondiaz, an approximately one eighth full bottle of Rondiaz rum, one bottle of Smirnoff Ice, one can of Miller Genuine Draft beer and one can of Miller High Life beer.