Police are investigating a reported robbery near a University of Cincinnati residence hall on Thursday night, with UC Public Safety sending out an alert about the incident near Scioto Hall around 8 p.m. The scene was cleared before 8:15 p.m., but the suspects remain at large.
According to WLWT, UC Public Safety said the suspects fled the scene in a blue Honda Civic with black rims and no license plates. Additional information about the robbery was not released Thursday night, leaving students and neighbors with little beyond the alert itself and a description of the getaway car.
Anyone who has seen the suspects or their vehicle is asked to contact UC Police or call 911, per the same alert. No details on what was taken, who was involved, or whether anyone was hurt have been made public.
Part of a Tense Fall Near Campus
Thursday's robbery adds to a string of incidents that have put UC students on edge this semester. In late September, three UC students were allegedly attacked, beaten and robbed while riding electric scooters on Short Vine Street, an incident the victims said involved a group of about nine people, according to a report from WCPO. All three students said they went to the hospital that night, and two were diagnosed with concussions.
WCPO described that Short Vine attack as part of a broader pattern, noting it marked the latest in a string of violent incidents near campus since the start of the fall semester, including several shootings. In response, a Cincinnati police spokesperson said the city, Cincinnati police and UC police had implemented a comprehensive safety strategy that included increased police presence alongside longer-term violence-prevention efforts, the station reported.
Other Armed Robberies Reported Near UC
In a separate incident chain, two more UC students reported being robbed at gunpoint near campus, with those reports describing attacks that happened between 7:30 and 8 p.m. one Tuesday night and around 7 p.m. the following Wednesday, WLWT reported in a different article. Police said the suspect in those cases was driving a 2007 blue Mitsubishi Outlander, and investigators said they believed the same suspect was involved in all four instances described in that report. No injuries were reported in those cases.
It is not known whether Thursday's robbery near Scioto Hall is connected to any of these earlier incidents. The university maintains that since 2008, crime on and around UC's Uptown campus has steadily decreased, even as the recent run of reports has rattled students living and traveling through the area.
For now, the Thursday night case near Scioto Hall remains open, with investigators asking anyone who saw the suspects or the plateless blue Civic to come forward.
