Metropolitan Police officers arrested a man at about 11 a.m. Tuesday for allegedly breaking into and stealing from offices in academic buildings.

A staffer in the School of Media and Public Affairs reported that Maurice Smith was trying to enter “various locked offices” on the fourth floor, University spokeswoman Michelle Sherrard said.

University Police officers detained Smith – who was already on probation for a previous crime – in University Yard, where Sherrard said he was found with a staff member’s credit card, $60 in cash and a gift card taken from an office in the GW Law School.

UPD Chief Kevin Hay said the unit has been using surveillance video to record images of suspected thefts on campus. He said officers recognized Smith after he was observed previously stealing from the Smith Center and Townhouse Row.

Two cases of burglary have been reported to UPD this academic year, according to the department’s online crime log.

There have been 161 thefts – most of which are electronic devices – on the Foggy Bottom Campus, mainly occurring in the Marvin Center and Gelman Library.

Following a reclassification in 2010 by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in order for a case to be counted as a burglary, there must be evidence of forced entry.