Four students were robbed, one at gunpoint, in a South Hall dorm room around midnight on Tuesday. The identities of the two perpetrators, who were reported to police around 1 a.m. on Wednesday, were still unknown at press time.
One of the four victims, two of whom lived in the room, allowed the two perpetrators into the dorm after they called from an outside blue-light phone, according to Director of Public Safety John King. One of the robbers pressed a handgun to a student's forehead, then robbed all four victims and fled the scene.
At least one of the perpetrators was known by at least one of the victims. An estimated $1,800 in cash and property was stolen, including two cell phones, several watches, and a digital camera.
Though the incident occurred around midnight, the victims waited a full hour to call Tufts University Police Department (TUPD). After questioning the victims last night, investigators are "focusing on the gap between the incident and the call, possibly related to fear," King said. The two residents, described by neighbors as "nice guys," declined to comment. According to a resident who spoke on condition of anonymity, the two residents will be moving out of South Hall.
King said it is unclear whether any of the victims knew both the perpetrators. One of the suspects is described as a white male with dark brown hair, approximately 5'8", and known as "Mike." The second suspect, who used the handgun, is described as light-skinned black or Hispanic, medium to large build, approximately 6' tall, and known as "Brandon" or "Randy." A bulletin has been released on the descriptions of the individuals.
King said it was unclear whether the robbery was premeditated, and the investigation has found no signs of confrontation. The victims told TUPD that the robbery was unanticipated, that the two perpetrators worked in concert. They and were not in the room "that long," according to King.
A TUPD officer was stationed at South Hall yesterday for precautionary measures, and residents reported that squad cars had been circling the building all day. According to residents, two detectives from the Somerville Police Department visited South yesterday to examine the room for fingerprints.
Despite the incident, King said he does not think that security measures should be heightened on campus. "The level of threat doesn't demand we maintain a higher level of security," he said. The Department of Public Safety e-mailed a security alert, posted notifications in residence halls, and broadcast a voice mail informing students and staff of the incident. Local channels 5 and 7 also aired the story on their news shows yesterday.
King called the Tufts location "perfect" for the crime, since it is situated in a residential neighborhood. [CORRECTION: Due to an editing error, a paraphrase of Director of Public SafetyJohn King in the original version of the article said King called Tufts a perfect locationfor the South Hall robbery. In fact, King said the University's suburbanlocation was perfect because it made Tufts less vulnerable to crime thanschools in urban areas. The Daily regrets the error.] He said that Medford and Somerville have been helpful with campus security and Somerville is lending forensics equipment to the investigation to fingerprint furniture in the room.
Though King said that awareness may be heightened after the incident, first floor South residents do not seem concerned. South resident Brandon Balkind said that one of the victims seemed calm about the incident yesterday. "The cops are handling it and I'm not really worried," he said.
Another South resident, Jessica Roberts, was surprised in the morning when she learned what had happened because she was not aware of the incident when it occurred. "It was very quiet, we didn't really hear anything," she said. "I'm not concerned for my safety"
Residents described the evening as "a quiet night," and many did not learn of the incident until they were notified by a e-mail and voicemail messages from the Office of Public Safety.
Sophomore Adrien Snow didn't learn of the incident until this morning when she received a frightened call from her mother. "My mom woke me up at eight o'clock, and I didn't even know what was going on," she said.
To Sophomore and Medford resident Frank Giliberti, the incident came as less of a surprise. "I've heard of them before," he said, when asked if he knew of other similar incidents in the surrounding neighborhoods.
King said that the campus has experienced few assaults this year and has generally been quiet. The last armed robbery incident that King could recall occurred four years ago, when a fraternity was robbed by perpetrators with knives. At the time the perpetrators fled the scene in a car and were stopped by TUPD because the headlights were off. The perpetrators were arrested and charged with armed robbery and felony.
Lauren Phillips and William Kinlaw contributed to this article.
