By Katelynn Liedtke

MURFREESBORO, Tenn. — Middle Tennessee State University Police Department has seen an increase in motor vehicle thefts connected to motorized scooters on campus within the last year. As a result, they’re encouraging students and others who use them to secure them properly to deter would-be thieves.

MTSU Police Sgt. Patrick Fajardo says thefts most commonly occur with scooters that are not secured or are secured using low-quality locks that can easily be cut or pulled off.

“The best thing to really protect yourself is make sure you use a high-quality lock and you lock it up every time,” said Fajardo. “Also, keeping a log of pictures of your scooter, any identifying features like stickers or anything like that.”

According to the MTSU Crime Report from 2025, police received approximately 19 reports of stolen scooters, some of which involved multiple scooters, with two reports deemed unfounded and one report of joyriding.

MTSU Police Chief Edwin Kaup said these reports are contributing to statistics for motor vehicle thefts on university property because how the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation and federal government track such thefts.

“The problem is the reporting mechanism for TBI and through the federal government does not allow it to be reported any other way. So, when we report the theft of a scooter, there is no other way to report it other than as a motor vehicle theft,” said Kaup.

Statistics of motor vehicle thefts on campus can be misleading. Those looking at the statistics through the TBI may be surprised to see the number of reports for motor vehicle thefts at MTSU.

“It looks horrible for us, right? It looks like you should not bring your car to MTSU,” said Kaup, tongue in cheek. “I think, I’ve been here for four years, we might have had one actual motor vehicle theft, and I think that’s someone who parked in the wrong lot.”

First-time MTSU student Bennett Elton said having a motorized scooter turned his 25 minute walk to campus into a five minute commute. Elton usually stores his scooter with everyone else’s when not in use.

“I actually just got this and I’m new here and I don’t even have a lock for it and it hasn’t gotten stolen yet,” said Elton.

MTSU Police sent out an email advisory on Friday morning following reports of two stolen scooters and one stolen e-bike since students moved in on Aug. 19. The advisory reiterates the department’s message by urging students to secure their MTDs with heavy-duty, high-quality locks. The advisory also asks community members to report anything that appears out of the ordinary.

Fajardo said that MTSU Police have been able to recover scooters using surveillance cameras and help from the community.

“We had a student call us who saw a scooter that was just abandoned off on a street near campus and when we investigated that, it turns out that led to the recovery of several scooters and the charging of people that had taken several of them,” Fajardo said.

Scooter safety and policy regarding operation

According to MTSU Police Office Coordinator Benjamin Hunt, there were five scooter-related accidents in 2025. These accidents consisted of someone on a scooter being struck by a vehicle, riders falling off scooters trying to avoid others, and riders hitting gate arms on campus.

The MTSU Police executive summary reports two accidents involving scooters since the start of the semester. One in which a rider fell off the scooter and was transported to the emergency room with an arm injury and another rider was struck by a vehicle but left the scene after speaking with the driver.

MTSU Parking Services’ website defines motorized scooters as Micromobility Transportation Devices. Parking Services’ guidelines state that MTD users should obey all state and other applicable traffic regulations. It also states that MTD users should exercise courteous and defensive driving.

“The biggest thing that students should know that they might not know, is that these scooters do have to follow specific laws and how they’re being operated,” said Fajardo. “I would tell people to check two places. First is the MTSU policy on micro mobility transportation devices. Then also to be familiar with their local and state laws regarding the operation of them.”

Along with following state laws and university policies, scooters are required to be equipped with lights in the front and back to be utilized at night and when braking.

Journalism major Katelynn Liedtke is a practicum student in the Office of News and Media Relations. Reach her at [email protected].