OK.....Who's the Ole Miss panty bandit ?

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When panty raids became popular on college campuses across the country in the 1950s, they were playful affairs, often with cooperative coeds.

The tradition has mostly died out these days. But someone in Oxford has taken it upon themselves to bring the fad back.

Between June 5 and Sept. 5, Oxford police have dealt with a dozen break-ins where a suspect -- the same person, police believe -- has entered young women's homes, stealing only their underwear -- ignoring jewelry, electronics and other valuables.

Almost all cases have involved students at the University of Mississippi, with one case being a recent Ole Miss graduate; the exception being a 36-year-old mother who police describe as "very young-looking."

The suspect has tended to strike between 7:30 a.m. and 11 p.m., always with the home uninhabited -- although in one case, a woman returned within three minutes of the break-in, thanks to a home alarm system.

"I haven't seen anything like this in my 23 years here," said Oxford police Det. Jimmy Williams, who has taken on the case; he handles the department's sexual assaults. He believes the suspect is targeting Ole Miss students because, he explained, "when the students come back, the suspect comes back."

Williams advises women in Oxford not to take the same routes in their day-to-day routines and to be aware of their surroundings. He is hoping for community tipsters to help clear up the case.

"That's how we solve 90 percent of these cases," he said.

-- Richard Morgan: 529-2774

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