Cal Poly Pomona University Police are investigating the robbery of two students Sunday night on a walkway near South Campus Drive and Temple Avenue.
At around 9:30 p.m., a man walked passed the students on the walkway near Parking Lot B then came back to confront them and demand their belongings, according to the university's website.
The suspect lifted his shirt and flashed what the students believed was the handle of a gun tucked in his waistband. The students gave the robber a purse, wallet, laptop computer, and other personal items, and the suspect fled, the university reported.
The two victims called University Police, who arrived two minutes after the robbery. The Pomona Police Department, who was also alerted, set up a perimeter around the area and called in a helicopter to search for the suspect.
A suspect briefly detained at the Residential Suites was released after the victims said he was not the one who robbed them. The search was called off after 45 minutes.
Lt. Bruce Wilson said in the university website story that the suspect might have boarded a transit bus.
The victims described the robber as a male in his 20s with a thin build. He was wearing a dark gray hooded sweatshirt and jean shorts.
Anyone with information about a possible suspect is encouraged to call University Police at (909) 869-3070. Anonymous tips may be left at (909) 869-3399. Officers will continue to provide extra patrol near the housing areas on the south end of campus throughout Monday.
“This is a low-crime community, but we take each and every crime very seriously – especially those that involve a weapon,” Wilson said. “We encourage anyone who sees suspicious activity to call us immediately.”
In 2011, two robberies were reported on campus, the most recent year in which full statistics are available. In the spring, two robberies happened on camps within a week in the southwest end of campus. In both of those incidences, the assailant or assailants robbed the victims of their cell phones. The description of the perpetrator or perpetrators in those robberies does not match Sunday's assailant.
--Cal Poly Pomona
