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Y! MyWebMiami kidnap attempt probe may spread
Monday, October 13, 2008
OXFORD — What initially seemed like an isolated abduction attempt in this small college town now appears to be a frightening string of crimes aimed at females around Oxford.
Police said four women contacted them after reportedly having been harassed by two males driving a white van around town in the early morning hours of Oct. 11.
"A similar description of the suspects and vehicle was given in each the four incidents," Oxford police Sgt. Jim Squance said. "From what we can tell they were targeting females who were walking home alone."
A 20-year-old Miami University student told police she was walking on South Beech Street near Mesler Auto Body around 4 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 11, when the men grabbed her from behind and attempted to force her into their van. She was able to break free of their grasp and run to her residence, Squance said.
Shortly after word got out regarding the attempted kidnapping, an 18-year-old Miami University student told police she was harassed by similar subjects. As she was walking on Patterson Avenue near Spring Street at 3:30 a.m., she said a white van approached her and two male occupants offered her a ride home.
The student reportedly turned down the offer, but said the van continued to slowly follow her until an oncoming vehicle approached them. She told police she noticed the same van in the parking lot behind her dorm at 4 a.m. on Oct. 12, adding a friend told her the vehicle had been parked there most of the day.
Squance said his department received two additional complaints of similar nature, but was unable to provide further information into either incident. He did confirm that they both involved females and took place during the same period of time on Saturday.
Oxford police stress the importance of using common sense, Squance said, encouraging both Miami students and Oxford community members to not put themselves in dangerous situations.
Anyone with information regarding the incident is asked to call the Oxford Police Department at (513) 524-5240 or its criminal investigations division at (513) 524-5248. Anonymous calls may be made to Crime Stoppers at (513) 352-3040.
Contact this reporter at (513) 523-4139, ext. 86102, or at rgauthier@coxohio.com.
Comments
By Vivi
October 15, 2008 6:15 AM | Link to this
Sadly, not everyone is inhibited by the cover of night to do their misdeeds. A couple years ago, I went outside on my porch and a van slowed down, near my driveway and the guy was looking right at me. In 40 degree weather, he had no shirt on and something told me to get in the house, so I did. He started yelling at me but I didn’t slow down. I had seen another passenger hop out and coming toward my driveway and that cinched my leaving the area. So, be careful even in the daylight hours.
By Mike
October 14, 2008 1:52 PM | Link to this
HA, looking for 2 males…. does anyone remember when they put a lookout and a campus crime alert looking for a white male, around 5’10 wearing cacky pants and a polo shirt!!!! OH WAIT, THAT’S HALF THE CAMPUS!!!
By UNIQUE
October 14, 2008 10:51 AM | Link to this
I WOULD SAY IF YOU HAVE TO BE OUT THAT LATE TIME OF NIGHT, WALK HOME IN A CROWD AND NOT ALONE! AND EVEN THEN SO, BUY SOME PEPPER SPRAY, A POCKET KNIFE, A NOISE ALERT, SOME TYPE OF PROTECTION. ALWAYS BE AWARE OF YOUR SURROUNDINGS, IF SOMETHING LOOKS SUSPICIOUS DON’T BLOW IT OFF. REMEMBER EVERYTHING YOU SEE AS FAR AS DESCRIPTIONS OF THE PERSON, THE VEHICLE, THE TIME OF NIGHT/DAY, LOCATION JUST IMPORTANT DETAILS! JUST BE CAREFUL MALE OR FEMALE UNLESS YOU PLAN ON BECOMING ANOTHER STATISTIC!
By Soldier
October 14, 2008 9:39 AM | Link to this
Really this is crazy how about the poice do some real work place a young lady undercover and watch for these kind of things.But that would take to many men and to many hours for this town to do.Thats why people do these things.They prob know the limits of the auth.Another thing this is a college town on the weekend.If you went to Miami you would remmember THEY PARTY ALL WEEKEND. That is prob why they were walking home.Better walking thendriving.Come on Oxford makethe people feel safe do somethin
By hourglassing
October 14, 2008 9:31 AM | Link to this
How about everytime a Miami coed sees a white van they take a quick pic with their ubiquitous camera phones? That way the kids can share photos back and forth, and disseminate the information the politically correct Miami/Oxford cops won’t.
By Inspector Gadget
October 14, 2008 8:43 AM | Link to this
You could start by providing a real description of the suspects - race, age, clothes, identifying features, etc. - rather than asking for information about “two males.”
By Brian
October 14, 2008 6:15 AM | Link to this
Although I sincerely hope these guys are captured, and soon, I must comment on one thing:
Why are these girls out in the middle of the night? Sure, it’s a college town; I went to Miami. However, let’s be realistic. Stay off the streets at 4am; that’s just common sense.