A man followed a University of Delaware student into her dorm room early Sunday and allegedly groped her before a resident assistant came to the student’s rescue, police said.
Though an ID card is needed to get into the university dorms, the stranger followed closely behind the female student as she swiped her card and then followed her into her room at about 3 a.m. Sunday.
Fortunately, the student was able to text her R.A. while the man was in her room. The R.A. rushed to the room and was able to get the attacker away from the woman, police said.
He tried to get into another campus building later but other resident assistants knew to keep him out
The man was called a "person of interest" by university police. He is described as in his 20s, about 5-foot-7, average build and short brown hair. He was dressed in a long-sleeve red shirt and blue jeans.
Police are now reviewing surveillance video, hoping to get a good shot of the intruder. Police say they have a good idea of who he is.
"The victim in the case did what we call 'tailgating' -- kind of followed that student in," said University of Delaware Police Chief Patrick Ogden. "So she didn't use her card. And then the suspect did the same thing as well."
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“After you swipe yourself in, you have to look behind you to make sure nobody comes in with you,” University of Delaware Freshman Jeremy Cantor told NBC Philadelphia.
But Cantor said that most students don’t do this, or hold the door for the person behind them. “Common courtesy,” a student said.
The University released a brief statement about the attack:
"The University of Delaware campus and public safety officers are continuing to gather evidence in this ongoing investigation. Because the outcome of the investigation has not been finalized, it is premature to make any conclusions or issue a statement," said spokesperson Meredith Chapman.
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