A burglary occurred through the unlocked rear door of a university-owned townhouse on the 1400 block of 36th Street early Tuesday morning, at least the fourth in a string of burglaries or attempted burglaries to take place within two blocks of Healy Gates in the past nine days.

One of the residents of the house was awakened at about 4 a.m. by the movements of four unknown males in her bedroom, according to a Public Safety Alert sent to the campus community Tuesday afternoon. She screamed, and the suspects, described only as being dressed in dark clothing and ski masks, fled the house, running down P Street toward 35th Street. The student and her housemates then discovered that property estimated to be worth about $3,000 had been stolen, including a flat-screen television, cell phone, jewelry, a laptop computer and cash, according to the PSA.

The residents immediately called the Department of Public Safety, which responded to the scene, followed by the Metropolitan Police Department and its crime scene unit. Authorities confirmed the suspects entered the residence through an unlocked rear door, the PSA states.

The most recent incident comes on the heels of a burglary that occurred through an unlocked back door at a university-owned townhouse on the same block early Friday morning. The suspects stole up to $6,000 worth of property in Friday’s incident, including valuable electronics and other possessions, according to a resident of the townhouse who asked to remain anonymous due to safety concerns. A burglary of a university-owned townhouse and an attempted burglary also occurred in the early morning nine days ago, March 15, on the 1200 block of 37th Street, according to DPS Associate Director Joseph Smith and an earlier PSA.

PD is investigating all four incidents, with support from DPS, according to an e-mail sent by administrators to the university community Tuesday evening.

In the e-mail, Vice President for Student Affairs Todd Olson and Vice President for University Safety Rocco Del Monaco urged students to report any suspicious behavior and to lock their doors and windows.

Representatives from Student Affairs and DPS will visit student occupants of apartments and townhouses in the coming days to remind them of applicable safety measures, according to the e-mail.

“Apart from efforts to gain student acceptance of best practices in residential security, DPS is taking a number of crime prevention measures, including security surveys and directed patrols,” DPS Associate Director Joseph Smith said.

Smith declined to comment on the possible interrelatedness of these incidents, but did say that an increase in near-campus crime in the area could be attributed to regional crime trends, the perceived vulnerability of the victims, the specific types of valuables targeted by the perpetrators, and even the weather.

“When all is said and done, though, burglars look for soft targets: unlocked doors and windows, unsecured property and poor or nonexistent security lighting,” Smith said.