Twenty-five-year-old Brandon Welty and 19-year-old Joseph Bauer of Manhattan were arrested Jan. 30 after robbing a 29-year-old man around 7 a.m on the 400 block of Leavenworth Street. According to a news release by the Riley County Police Department, the two male suspects brandished a weapon and stole a backpack. 

An estimated $450 was stolen, Ashley Tokoi, public information officer for RCPD, said. 

“We had a search warrant, we had a lead on who it was, and we executed a search warrant by 3 o’clock that day,” Tokoi said. “The two people that were involved in that aggravated robbery were arrested by 5 o’clock that afternoon.”

According to Kansas legislature, aggravated robbery is committed by a person who is armed with a dangerous weapon or inflicts bodily harm during the robbery. It is considered a severity level 3, person felony.

Welty was issued a $90,000 total bond for the aggravated robbery and a criminal threat probation violation, Toko said. Baur was issued an $82,000 bond for criminal damage to property probation violation, failure to appear in court and aggravated robbery.

Matthew Lane, sophomore in electrical engineering, said because of Manhattan’s size, it makes sense that it’s a bit more “rowdy.”

“From what I can tell, though, whether it just be the size of Manhattan, the police do seem quite adept at responding quickly to disturbances,” Lane said. “From what I know, most of it occurs in Aggieville and typically at night, so I more or less already avoid spots prone to crime apart from them being spots prone to crime.”

Tokoi said RCPD wants to reduce crime in Manhattan.

“We just did a bunch of town hall meetings … and the whole purpose of the town hall meeting is we’re never going to eliminate crime, it’s just human nature,” Tokoi said. “Our director is looking to compile a crime reduction plan, that is his focus. It’s really about addressing community concerns and trying to focus on that because if we can get community buy-in …when we’re talking about crime statistics and analytics and stuff like that, we are — for the size of our community — are very, very low.

Megan Wheeler, owner of Ellen’s Planted Tea, said she appreciates the police’s response times. 

“I did have to call the police for public safety because there was a gentleman that was intoxicated out in the street and they seemed to come pretty quick,” Wheeler said. “In this front part of Aggieville, you don’t really notice much crime, and then just living in Manhattan I haven’t really noticed a whole lot.”

Tokoi said more Manhattan residents commit crimes than Kansas State students. RCPD wants students to use safe practices and be mindful when going out in Manhattan. 

“The thing that I would suggest is to make sure your cars are locked,” Tokoi said. “We’re seeing a lot of theft from motor vehicles where they found a way into the motor vehicle or the motor vehicle was unlocked. Also, just theft in general. If you have a bicycle locked outside, make sure you check on it.”

You should also have someone sober with you, Tokoi said.

“Keep at least one person sober. We just recently — within the last week —  cops came upon a college student … that had been assaulted,” Tokoi said. “He just got up and left. He didn’t want to file any charges or anything, but he was behind one of the bars.” 

Students have many transportation systems they can utilize, like the bus system and Uber.

“Just as an FYI, we’re getting ready to ramp up our preparation for Fake Patty’s Day,” Tokoi said. “We’re going to start cracking down on MIPs early, littering, public urination and all that stuff.”