College students may not realize it, but they are often targets for thieves. Almost all students at the University of Georgia, for example, have laptops, pricey phones, game systems and expensive televisions and, let's face it, they are not always careful or diligent with them. Because they can leave laptops in the library while grabbing a coffee or can leave big-screen TVs in plain view from a window, they are often targeted by people who want to steal these things.

That seems to be what happened at the Verandas of Athens recently. Thieves took advantage of the holiday absence of most students and stole about $8,000 worth of equipment. They pried open windows and made off mostly with TVs.

A spokesman for the Athens-Clarke County police department said since many of the students have not yet returned from holiday break, it is possible they have an inaccurate idea of how much was stolen and, thus, the dollar loss could be higher.

At the risk of sounding like your parents, all college students should try to be careful with their things. Do not leave small, easy-to-swipe electronics like iPods out in the open where anyone could grab them. Also, it's a good idea to keep things like gaming systems and television where they can't easily be seen.

Source: The Athens Banner-Herald, "Thieves hit student complex over holiday," Dec. 30, 2011