A male Northwestern student was held at gunpoint Friday night, said shift commander Sgt. Tim Reuss of University Police.
The 20-year-old student was walking to his car on the 800 block of Hamlin Street around 9 p.m. Friday when he was approached by three men wearing hooded clothing, Reuss said.
One man displayed a semi-automatic gun and demanded the student’s wallet, which contained $30 and credit cards, Reuss said.
The men took the wallet and fled on foot, Reuss said. The student was not harmed.
The man holding the gun was last seen wearing a grey sweatshirt and was described as a 5-foot-8-inch black male between 17 and 19 years old. A second man was described as a 6-foot-2-inch black male, also between 17 and 19 years old, last seen wearing a black, hooded trenchcoat. The student was unable to identify the third man.
Both UP and Evanston Police Department responded to the incident, but the details of the EPD report were not available Sunday.
“This is a nice street and a pretty quiet neighborhood,” said Carolyn Siegel, a Communication junior who lives on the 800 block of Hamlin. “It was pretty disturbing to hear (about the robbery).”
Siegel said she often walks home alone late at night but this incident will make her try to be more aware of her surroundings.
The site of Friday night’s robbery was about three blocks northwest of Engelhart Hall, where two attacks occurred Spring Quarter.
On May 8, a man attempted to drag a woman walking near Engelhart into a dark recess. Another woman’s purse was snatched May 24 while she walking with a friend through Engelhart’s parking lot.
Lt. Nicholas Parashis, of UP, warned students, especially males who think they are less prone to being attacked, to remain aware of their surroundings.
And if approached, “don’t fight back,” Parashis said.
“Just meet their demands,” he said. “It’s worth your personal safety.”
Nell Haynes, director of Women’s Coalition, recommended students walk in groups, carry a flashlight and travel along well-lit streets.
“It’s just important for people to realize that as nice as Evanston seems, crime does happen,” said Haynes, a Communication senior.
“People are being attacked right outside their doors,” she added.
Since Spring Quarter Haynes worked with Ald. Arthur Newman (1st), whose ward includes most of South Campus, on improving lighting in areas of Evanston around campus, but she said those improvements will not come for four or five years.
