“This is a reminder to all of us that, including the faculty and staff, that we live in a world where we can’t leave locks open,” UD President Eric Spina said. “Obviously we’re going to continue to patrol and work with Dayton, City of Dayton police to make certain we stay safe.”
Three female students reported that a nude man entered their houses early Wednesday morning. The first encounter occurred around 3:15 a.m. on Woodland Avenue, the second at 4 a.m. on Frericks Way and the third at 4:15 a.m. on College Park Avenue, according to an email advisory from the university.
The female involved in the Frericks Way break-in told police the suspect attempted to restrain her as she left the room. Police said it appears the intruder entered the homes through either an unsecured door or window, leading officials to encourage students to lock up at night.
In all three instances, the suspect was described as a white male in his mid 20s, approximately 5’10”, medium build, with brown curly hair, police said.
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The last of three victims who lived on College Park Avenue, said she woke up to the man standing in her bedroom. He then fled on foot and she ran to her roommate’s bedroom and locked the door until police arrived.
The police reports about the break-ins were requested on Wednesday by this news organization.
When freshman Erica Abbarno woke up Wednesday morning, she said she was “alarmed” to see the university advisory about the intruder. Abbarno had to be at work at 5:30 a.m. at the RecPlex so her brother, senior Justin Abbarno, went over to Marycrest Complex to walk her to work.
“It was very alarming,” Justin Abbarno said. “It caught me off guard but I’m glad we had the alert and it seems like it’s being taken care of.”
Justin Abbarno said he lives near where the intruder was spotted on College Park Avenue. The incident “scared me to the point,” that he wasn’t going to let his little sister walk to work alone just about an hour after the last sighting was reported, he said.
Other UD students called Wedenesday’s intruder incident “shocking” and “really scary.”
“This is a community and we all love each other and respect each other,” said sophomore Sydney Fost. “So it’s kind of shocking that someone would do that to all of us.”
Spina said that campus police and security forces have “spent a lot of time” talking to UD students. He said they’ve encouraged them to take precautions such as making sure they don’t walk alone at night.
“Obviously safety and security of our students is most important to us,” Spina said.
The break-ins follow a similar incident that happened in October when a naked male intruder woke a female student living in the student neighborhood just south of campus.
On Oct. 8, a female student who lives on Stonemill Road reported at about 1:30 a.m. that she had been awakened by sounds inside the residence, according to an advisory.
The student then saw a naked man standing in the doorway of her bedroom. She screamed and the man fled from the residence in an unknown direction.
UD police officers searched the neighborhood in October but were unable to locate the suspect. A report released by university police in October did not disclose any additional details of that incident.
A male intruder was also reported to have entered a student residence on Stonemill Road on Dec. 10, according to a safety advisory. In the December incident, the man woke one student at 3:15 a.m. when he touched her leg while she slept. The intruder woke up a second student and left the residence when confronted, according the advisory.
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