Crime

UH police investigating attempted armed robbery on campus

The University of Houston Department of Public Safety continues its investigation into an attempted aggravated robbery of a UH student with a semi-automatic pistol. According to UHDPS, the complainant was walking on the sidewalk between Agnes Arnold Hall and Science Research 1 when two unidentified males approached him.

The suspects asked the complainant for money, who responded by telling them that he had none. They asked again, and the complainant repeated that he had nothing.

One of the suspects then revealed a weapon in his waistband. This did not sway the complainant, who again said that he had no money.

The two suspects then left the scene. The complainant was not injured during the incident.

“These aren’t professional criminals we’re talking about,” Lt. Brett Collier said. “These are folks in their late teens and early-20s who are pretty nervous when they do these kinds of things, and may not know how to react to an answer like that.”

Considering the situation, Collier is satisfied the outcome was not tragic.

“We’re glad it worked out the way it did and that it wasn’t an aggressive thing,” Collier said. “But we always keep in the back of our minds that the next one could be.”

Collier said that the event was not captured on security cameras and adjustments will be made to “try to pick up areas like that.”

Police do not confidently believe that robbery was the suspects’ original intent for coming to campus.

“It’s an unusual one, but we’ve had things like that at all times during the day and it may have just been a crime of opportunity,” Collier said. “It’s possible that they were up here for some other purpose — maybe they’re up here to steal a book or something — and they saw an opportunity,” Collier said. “(Maybe) they happened to see someone walking by themselves. It’s hard to say what the situation was.”

One suspect is described as a medium build white male, approximately 5-8 to 5-11 in height, between the ages of 19 and 23, who was wearing a grey hooded sweatshirt and athletic shorts.

The second suspect is described as a medium build black male, around 6-0 to 6-1, between the ages of 19 and 23, who was wearing a black hooded sweatshirt, dark blue jeans, a red ball cap and white shoes.

The UHDPS will continue trying to determine the identity of the suspects, primarily by reviewing footage from security cameras of the surrounding areas.

2 Comments

  • Are there sign up around campus, beside in the parking lot, informing people that there are cameras and that they are being looked at regularly? Im trying to get some insight because I'm writing a paper thats due soon about helpin to deter crime on campus, especially at night.

    • The UHDPS has made an effort to increase the visibility of a security presence on campus. I'm not sure about about the cameras, but I know that they review every situation and try to improve the campus security. You should try to contact them for your paper.

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