Cal State San Bernardino Students On Alert After Series Of Attacks
SAN BERNARDINO (CBSLA.com) — Students at CalState San Bernardino are on alert after two women were attacked on campus last week.
Campus police say a man last weekend grabbed a female student from behind, covered her mouth and told her they were going for a ride. Officers say the student elbowed her attacker and got free.
The incident came just days after another woman reported a man tried to rape her in a stairwell at the same library. She also broke free.
About a week before that, a student was carjacked. That suspect was later arrested.
Student Dajanae Welch says after three separate attacks, she's on edge.
"I feel like it's just unsafe," Welch said. "I've been here for four years now, and I lived on campus, and I never really felt unsafe until the past couple of weeks since things have been happening."
"School is supposed to be a safe zone. But now it's kind of ... I don't think so," student Evelyn Gamiz echoed.
Campus officials have posted alerts warning students about the recent incidents at an entrance to one dorms.
University President Tomás D. Morales, meanwhile, acknowledged Monday the school had "experienced an unprecedented number of crimes on campus" within the past two weeks.
"This is incredibly disturbing, as this university has long been a model for campus safety, including being ranked amongst the safest campuses in California," he stated, adding that staff and students had contacted his office with concerns.
"Let me be clear: The safety of our campus community is our highest priority, and I have instructed our leadership team accordingly," Morales continued in part.
He also said that in addition to contacting city and county leaders about increasing police presence, university police staffing has been "more than doubled."
Investigators are unsure if the same man is behind the two attacks at the campus library.