"We've been doing stings in certain areas," he says. HUPD detectives have collared several repeat offenders using undercover officers.

And officers are working closely with the city of Cambridge to develop joint programs aimed at combating bike thefts.

The simplest solution to crime problem--putting more cops on the beat, especially using officers on bicycles--has also worked, Riley says.

"When [we] started bike patrols, bike crime went down significantly," Riley said. "It falls into a pattern. Thefts are down probably because of the bike officers being more readily visible."

More serious crime, including rape, robbery and assault, stayed at roughly the same level. Harvard-affiliated persons reported 17 instances of aggravated assault in 1997, and 21 incidents in 1998.

Five people reported instances of acquaintance rape. There were no reported "stranger" rapes in 1998, the statistics show.

However, earlier this month a Harvard-affiliated woman was raped by a stranger in Byerly Hall at 8 Garden St. in Radcliffe Yard. Police are still investigating that crime.

Riley says the low level of "crime to persons" can also be attributed to a phenomenon he calls "hardening the target"--training the Harvard community to better protect themselves and their property.