Two assaults reported on UK campus

 

 

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Police are searching for suspects after two assaults were reported on UK’s campus Wednesday night.

UK released a crime bulletin after police responded to two reports of assault in the area of Woodland and Hilltop avenues at 11:49 p.m. Wednesday.

The night of the two reported assaults, UK Police did not feel there would be any more assaults that night or that the assailants would be a continued threat to the university community, UK Interim Police Chief Joe Monroe said. For that reason, police did not issue a safety alert immediately.

The university issued the safety bulletin Thursday afternoon because, after speaking with the Lexington Police Department, UK Police officials found similarities with several cases city police have been investigating, Monroe said.

Lexington Police Department spokeswoman Ann Gutierrez said the reported UK assaults bear a resemblance to three separate incidents city police have responded to in the past week. Officials from both police departments will meet to further discuss the cases and possible similarities on Friday, she said.

In one of the cases reported on UK’s campus Wednesday night, an unknown individual punched a male victim in the face, according to the crime bulletin. The victim and a friend fled the area back to their residence hall in the Kirwan-Blanding complex.Several minutes later, UK Police received a report of a second male victim being assaulted in the same area.

An unknown male approached a second victim and attempted to shake his hand but struck him in the side of the head knocking his glasses off. The victim then struck the attacker, knocking him to the ground.

As the victim began to return to his residence hall, two other unknown individuals exited a silver vehicle parked nearby and began running after him.

Both victims described one suspect as an African-American male, approximately 6- to 6-foot-3 in height and about 210 pounds. He was last seen wearing a grey hooded sweatshirt, according to UK’s crime bulletin. The crime bulletin did not list detailed descriptions of the other two suspects.

The suspect vehicle is described as a silver or grey sedan, possibly a Pontiac Grand Prix.

Anyone with information can call UK Police at (859) 257-1616.