The fifth sexual assault in less than a month in the area surrounding Tufts' campus was reported on Thursday.
A woman who is not a Tufts student reported being groped at a Medford bus stop at 5:45 a.m. on Thursday. The woman was grabbed by the waist from behind, groped, and also felt a sharp object in her side. The stop is at the corner of Boston Avenue and North Street.
Elbowing the suspect, the woman was able to escape, and the suspect fled. While boarding the bus, she saw the suspect drive east on Boston Avenue in a four-door burgundy car.
According to a description that the Tufts University Police Department (TUPD) sent to the student body, the suspect in this case is "a white male, possibly Hispanic, in his mid-20s, 5'8" to 5'9," medium build, with a diamond earring in his right ear.
"He was wearing a dark baseball cap with a red 'B' and a dark gray or black pullover sweatshirt with pockets in the front and no logo. He wore dark jeans and white sneakers with the front of his pant legs tucked into his sneakers."
It is unclear if this assault is connected to the others, although two of the past ones involved similar scenarios.
The first of the five assaults happened on March 31, when a Tufts student was forced to the ground and then assaulted on Curtis Street by a man who pretended to need directions. On April 10 at 9:45 p.m., a female Tufts student was groped from behind on Winthrop Street near Capen Street.
On Friday, April 21 at 10:25 p.m., a 24-year-old woman walking up Medford's Winthrop Street from a bus stop on Boston Avenue was threatened with a knife and forcefully assaulted twice, once in a driveway and once in a small red SUV. On Saturday, April 21, a woman was groped from behind on North Street in Somerville.
Dean of Student Affairs Bruce Reitman said that concern has been widespread on all fronts. "It's crazy - especially because it's right on top of Virginia Tech," he said. "It's hard to feel secure."
To respond to the assaults, TUPD has been working in conjunction with the Medford Police Department and the Somerville Police Department. The Massachusetts State Police have also contributed to the case. "It's been called a serial situation," Reitman said.
In the Tufts community, he said that an increased number of students have been using TUPD's escort services in the wake of the assaults. "The number of requests for transport [has] gone up substantially. I'm glad students are taking advantage of that," he said.
Plans will also be in place to protect students during the exam period and during Senior Week, he said.
Students living off campus have been very concerned by the assaults. "It's been terrifying that the assaults happened so close by," said Jessica Ceruzzi, a junior who lives on Boston Avenue near its intersection with Winthrop Street. "My housemates and I are scared to walk around at night, and we are constantly calling to check up."
She said that she has used the escort service, but that having to rely on it is discomforting. "I hate not feeling safe in my own home," she said.
