As­sault takes place over break

 

On Fri­day, March 5 a com­muter stu­dent claimed he was leav­ing the Good­man Gym and was jumped by two males in the North park­ing lot. The stu­dent said there was a scuf­fle but there was no at­tempt to steal any­thing from him or break into his ve­hi­cle. He said the two men sim­ply walked away af­ter the al­ter­ca­tion. The stu­dent was not in­jured. He de­scribed the sus­pects as two black males, slen­der builds, both ap­prox­i­mately six feet, about 180 pounds. One wore a black hooded sweat­shirt and the other a red hooded sweat­shirt.

Cam­pus Safety Di­rec­tor Phil Jerome said the case is un­der in­ves­ti­ga­tion and there­fore some of the de­tails can­not be re­leased. He said the Mishawaka Po­lice De­part­ment is also work­ing on the case.

Jerome wanted to as­sure every­one that no other in­ci­dents have hap­pened since the re­ported case on March 5. He said stu­dents need to be aware that these things can hap­pen.

"In­for­ma­tion and aware­ness are your best weapons against crime and ac­ci­dents," said Jerome.

Jerome also pro­vided some tips to help stu­dents pro­tect them­selves. "Safe­walks" can be re­quested by call­ing Cam­pus Safety, and an of­fi­cer will es­cort stu­dents to their des­ti­na­tion on cam­pus. He also men­tioned that se­cu­rity boxes are placed in var­i­ous ar­eas on cam­pus where stu­dents can page an of­fi­cer to help them if they are in trou­ble or sense trou­ble. He said stu­dents need to be alert and aware of their sur­round­ing and they need to be aware of "piggy back­ing."

"When you swipe your card to go into your dorm, who is en­ter­ing be­hind you that you did­n’t have to swipe to get in? If you don’t know them and they don’t be­long there, call Cam­pus Safety im­me­di­ately," said Jerome.

Jerome said fol­low­ing these tips can help keep stu­dents and the cam­pus safe. He said lock­ing your doors be­hind you can also help to keep your be­long­ings pro­tected.

"Cam­pus Safety pro­vides im­por­tant ser­vices to our cam­pus, but noth­ing we do can re­place your ac­tions in main­tain­ing se­cu­rity and safety," said Jerome.

If you have any concerns about your safety you can reach the office by calling 257-3500 or 292-8100.