University Housing and the UW-Madison Police Department are again asking students to be aware of their personal safety after a robbery was reported late Tuesday night at Witte Residence Hall.
According to Director of University Housing Paul Evans, UWPD responded to a call at approximately 11:45 p.m. Tuesday after a man entered the Witte 7A dorm room of two female students, choking one and taking an undisclosed amount of money from both students.
""We had our door open—a man came in,"" said Natalie Church, UW-Madison freshman and roommate of the girl who was choked. ""I didn't notice that he had come in because I can't see the door or my roommate's desk. He came in without me knowing, grabs her around the neck and asks for money. Eventually I noticed and I got up and said ‘Hey, I'm in here too.' I gave him my money and eventually he left.""
Church added that the suspect, who was in their room for approximately five minutes, closed their door and locked it behind him when he entered the room.
""When I realized that he was in the room, I was actually instant messaging with my friend,"" she said. ""I messaged to her to go get help which is kind of difficult to do over the Internet. She kind of thought I was joking but I logged off right away.""
According to Church, her dormmate knocked on their door while the man was still in the room but he told Church to make her leave.
""She left and then got help, but by the time they got back he was already gone,"" she said.
Church said her housefellow and UWPD arrived at the scene immediately.
According to a UWPD press release, the suspect is described as a white male, approximately 40 years old, between 5' 6' and 5' 8' tall, 160 lbs., with a ""scruffy"" mustache and beard and short brown hair and possibly a gold tooth. He was last seen wearing a dark blue or black jacket, jeans and dark boots.
""We are trying to evaluate how the person got into the building,"" UWPD Sgt. Michael Newton said.
Evans said the front doors of Witte were locked at 9 p.m., which means the suspect most likely followed a student in or hid in one of the stairwells for a period of time.
""Our electronic monitoring system allows us to check to see if everything was locked and working and it was,"" he said.
As police and university officials continue to search for the suspect, students are asked to keep a wary eye on anyone who looks suspicious.
Newton said students should avoid holding the door open for others and always keep doors locked.
""Even when you're in your room, it's always a good idea to have your door locked,"" he said.
Newton also stressed students should call the police if anyone seems out of place.
""A 40-year-old, white male probably seems out of place in the dorm—go ahead and give us a call,"" he said.
Newton said liaison officers will be in the residence halls, patrolling as much as they normally do.
""We'll have detectives canvassing the area, talking with people, trying to find out as much information as we can on the suspect so we can try to catch the person,"" he said.
Evans said Witte residents received an e-mail reminding them to use common sense when it comes to their personal safety.
Anyone with information regarding the incident is encouraged to call the UWPD at (608) 264-2677.
