1/30:
Around noon, a property damage crash was called in from the Belgrade parking lot after a dump truck grazed a parked vehicle while leaving the lot and then called in to report the accident. The University of Maine Police Department (UMPD) said no one was inside the vehicle when it was struck. Officers contacted the vehicle owner and ensured both parties exchanged insurance information.
2/1:
At 4 a.m., a suspicious complaint was filed from Androscoggin Hall after a student called in and reported loud talking coming from a dorm room. UMPD responded and made contact with four individuals inside the room, identifying one as a University of Maine student and the other three as students from an out-of-state college. The four were confirmed to be intoxicated and underage, which prompted officers to confiscate all alcohol in the dorm. The three non-students were issued trespass warnings and escorted off campus, while the UMaine student was reported to student conduct.
2/2:
At 5 a.m., an information complaint was filed from Androscoggin Hall after a student called in and told UMPD it smelled like cigarettes in the hallway outside their dorm room. Officers responded and searched the hallway, but were unable to pinpoint a precise location from which the smell was originating. The case is closed.
At 10 a.m., an information complaint was filed from Merrill Hall after a student called in about a suspicious vehicle idling outside the building with tinted windows. Officers made contact with the driver, who said they were a parent dropping off a group of students.
At 3 p.m., a communication complaint was filed from Hart Hall. A student called UMPD and reported he was receiving strange text messages from random numbers, leading him to believe someone may have written his number on a bathroom stall. Officers are still working to identify where the phone number may have been written, so the case remains open.
At 11 p.m., a noise complaint was filed from Knox Hall after a student reported excessive chatter coming from a dorm on their floor. UMPD responded and made contact with the occupants, who were three male students playing video games. The group was cooperative when asked to turn the volume down, so they were not reported to student conduct. No similar calls were received following the verbal warning.
2/3:
Around midnight, an information complaint was filed from the parking lot just outside the Memorial Union behind Stevens Hall. A student called UMPD and requested a ride home after sharing he was too intoxicated to drive. Officers responded and gave the student a ride to his apartment in Old Town. The student was able to pick up his vehicle from the parking lot the next day and was not reported to student conduct since he was not underage.
At 5 p.m., an information complaint was filed from College Avenue after a student called the Division of Student Life and reported that members of the fraternity Phi Eta Kappa were hosting a bonfire and throwing items other than wood into the fire. According to the fraternity’s Instagram, the event was part of a “Bonfire & Pizza” night hosted as part of their Spring Rush ’26 schedule. The Student Life office informed UMPD of the situation, and officers arrived on scene at the fraternity house to investigate. Officers found metal coil springs in the fire, indicating a mattress may have been burned. The Orono Fire Department was called to extinguish the fire. Those present were reported to the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life, which will be responsible for issuing any reprimand to the group.
2/4:
At 10 a.m., a property damage crash was called in from the Hilltop parking lot after a student reported sideswiping a vehicle in an adjacent parking space while trying to pull into a space. UMPD said no one was injured or inside the vehicle when it was struck and ensured both parties exchanged insurance information.
At 2 p.m., an information complaint was filed from the tennis courts outside the New Balance Recreation Center after a student called in and shared that someone walking by their vehicle had yelled at them for parking in a handicap spot, despite the student having a handicap placard. The student provided a description of the person who yelled at them, but officers searching the area were unable to locate anyone matching the description. UMPD advised the recreation center to keep an eye out for someone matching the description and to call if they were spotted. The case remains open.
At 11 p.m., a property damage crash was called in from Rangeley Road after a student reported they had fallen asleep at the wheel and driven into bushes along the side of the road. Officers arrived on scene and located the student in the vehicle with the airbags deployed. The University Volunteer Ambulance Corps was called to perform a medical evaluation, and it was determined the student had suffered minor bruising but did not need transport to a hospital. UMPD drove the student back to their dorm and the vehicle was towed for repair.
