Rollins College found itself dealing with a violent altercation and accusations of a brandished weapon late on Halloween night, sending the campus into a shelter-in-place just as many students were making their way home from a night of celebration.
The Sandspur has acquired an incident report from Ken Miller, director of Campus Safety, that outlines the events of the evening. The names of all students and Campus Safety Officers involved have been redacted by Campus Safety for privacy reasons. Miller has indicated that there is still an ongoing investigation with the Winter Park Police Department, but he provided the document as a summary of what information is already known.
At 2:05 a.m., a campus safety officer on foot patrol heard several people yelling outside of Pugsley Hall, followed by increased commotion. Upon rushing to investigate the situation, the officer found a group of individuals physically fighting who stopped when the officer shined his flashlight on the group.
“A few students from Pugsley” then approached the CSO and informed him that a man had pulled a gun on them. The students then pointed at a Black male with dreadlocks who was wearing a white A-frame tank top and a black hoodie. The identified man began running at full speed in the direction of the flagpole at Tars Plaza. The CSO pursued the alleged suspect but lost sight of the man by the time he reached the flagpole by Tars Plaza. Information was relayed to other CSOs and WPPD responding units via radio.
Upon later reviewing CCTV footage, Miller confirmed that Campus Safety had been able to identify the alleged suspect running down Holt Avenue between Carnegie Hall and Lyman Hall. Miller “surmised that the suspect fled down Chase Avenue in order to leave campus as quickly as possible,” according to his statement in the incident report.
Following this relay, the CSO and Miller issued a Shelter-in-Place R alert at 2:25 a.m., advising community members to avoid areas between Tars Plaza and Park Avenue. A barricade was erected between Chase and Strong Hall to isolate the area around Pugsley Hall, where WPPD was positioned to direct traffic away from the area, collect statements from students, and await the arrival of K-9 units. In addition, a WPPD air unit was employed to scan for thermal signatures on and around campus.
The Incident Report also provided details about the initial conflict that caught the CSO’s attention. A student alleged that he had been “jumped” by 3 or 4 students who were punching and kicking him. The student appeared to have suffered some minor injuries.
By 3:20 a.m., WPPD issued an “all clear” and reported no suspect being found or taken into custody. The Sandspur contacted WPPD for follow-up statements about the ongoing investigation, but WPPD declined to provide any additional information at this time.
No officer saw a weapon on the fleeing man who was pointed out by the students from Pugsley Hall, which currently houses fraternity Tau Kappa Epsilon.
This article was edited on Nov. 12 to remove information regarding YikYak.
This article was edited on Nov. 14 to remove descriptions of the student’s injuries.
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