All three of the robberies happened at night, when some students are already on heightened alert. "At night, I walk in this dark area and it's just kind of scary because you don't know who can pop out at you. So I get a little concerned," said student Marissa Cecil.
Two of the incidents happened around Barstow and Millbrook. Last Wednesday, two suspects threatened two Fresno State students at gunpoint before hitting and shoving them into some bushes. Then, on Sunday, a female was walking on the sidewalk when a suspect told her he would shoot her if she didn't give him what was in her wallet. Even though those crimes happened off-campus, Fresno State Police still sent out alerts to students because of the proximity. "Anything that could affect our students, we want them to know, we want them to feel safe, and we want to give them information to help them be safe," said Lt. Lupe Shrum with University Police.
Lt. Shrum said it is unusual to have three robberies reported within such a short time period but at this point, it's unknown if they are related. While Fresno and University Police investigate, students we talked with said for the most part, they feel safe on campus, especially during the day. At night, they take fewer chances. "You kind of have to realize, you have to stay with people, stay in groups, walk in groups to stay safe," said student Matt Redmond.
"I'll make sure I grab a couple of buddies and have them drive me to my car, just so I'm not around campus after dark. I've seen so many of these alerts, I know it does happen," said Katie Williamson.
All of the victims have given police somewhat different suspect descriptions, which are included in the campus alerts. Right now, students at the university are in the middle of finals. They are being reminded to always be aware of their surroundings and call campus police if they need an escort after dark.