n a community of more than 28,000, keys go missing every day at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. Wallets, headphones and plenty of other belongings, too. But an engraved wedding band? That’s a more unusual find.
The ring was discovered outside the Nebraska Union on Sept. 5, ahead of Husker football’s season opener against Ohio, and turned over to University Police’s lost and found on Sept. 6. Weeks later, it remains unclaimed.
“Normally, we don’t get a lot of lost rings,” said Sara Haake, dispatch director for University Police. “And they’re usually things people notice right away when they are lost.”
Keys and key fobs, bank cards and headphones are among the everyday items that find their way to the university’s lost and found. Cash turns up, too.
To track incoming items and help reunite them with their owners, University Police uses an online system called Crowdfind. Dispatchers and officers record where each item was found and who turned it in.
“Most items are posted within 10 or 15 minutes of being turned over to us,” Haake said.
The system relies on students, faculty, staff and campus visitors turning in what they find. Campus partners, including staff in the Nebraska Unions, Campus Recreation and University Housing, also help by holding found items briefly before handing them over to police.
University Police focuses on valuables that can be matched to an owner, as well as items that could pose a safety concern if left unattended. Those include wallets, purses, cash, identification and charge cards, keys, prescription medication, working bicycles and certain electronic devices.
The guidelines were developed in part because the department was receiving too many miscellaneous items.
“We had an issue where people were just turning random stuff into us, like books and notebooks and clothing. People even turned in single gloves,” Haake said. “We just don’t have enough space to store all the things.”
Electronics generally must be worth more than $250 or be part of a complete set with a unique identifier. A single wireless earbud, for example, may not qualify because it can be difficult to match to its owner.
Items lost during Husker Athletics events follow a different path, with lost and found handled through guest services at each venue.
“Anything that gets lost in an Athletics facility stays in the facility,” Haake said.
For other items accepted by University Police, the department holds property for 30 days while staff members try to locate its owner. If an item goes unclaimed, it is destroyed or transferred through an appropriate university surplus process, depending on the type of property. Electronic devices containing personal information that cannot be securely removed are not resold.
Lost something on campus? Here’s what to do.
- Search online. Visit the University Police's lost-and-found database to browse items in police custody.
- File a claim. If you see something that looks like yours, select it and choose “File a claim.” You’ll be asked for details to help verify ownership. Allow two to three business days for a response.
- Don’t see your item? File a claim anyway. It may not have been turned in yet. Filing a claim gives police information they can use if it arrives later.
- Check the right place. For items lost during Athletics events, contact Huskers’ guest services. Elsewhere on campus, check with the building or department where you last had the item.
- Found something? Turn it in. University Police accepts eligible items at its front desk 24 hours a day, seven days a week. To arrange a transfer or ask questions, call 402-472-2222.
- Bring identification to pick up your property. Once police verify a claim, items can be collected at University Police, 300 N. 17th St. Bring photo identification that matches the claim.
For now, the wedding band remains unclaimed. Its engraving holds details that could help identify its owner, but police are keeping those details private to verify any claim.
Haake encourages anyone who has lost something on campus to check the online database and file a claim with University Police.
“We appreciate the people who take the time to turn things in,” Haake said. “You never know how important something might be to the person who lost it, and we always hope we can get it back where it belongs.”
