Madison police announced Monday that two recent sexual assaults of UW-Madison students are linked to the same suspect and are warning students to take extra precautions in the coming days.
Police Public Information Officer Mike Hanson said the description of the suspect in the Dec. 9 abduction on the 500 Block of North Carroll Street matches that of the suspect in the similar Nov. 29 abduction on Observatory Drive.
The attacker is described as a chunky black male in his mid-20s, according to a statement. At the time of the two sexual assaults, the suspect was said to be wearing a dark puffy coat as well as smelling of cigarette and marijuana smoke.
According to police, in each case the attacker has abducted a female UW-Madison student and then taken his victim to a separate location to sexually assault her. The attacker has then taken his victim downtown, fleeing by vehicle.
We have determined both cases are linked and we have detectives from both agencies working on the case,"" said Sgt. Michael Newton of the UW-Madison police department.
Lori Berquam, interim dean of students, said campus officials plan on sending a campus-wide e-mail to students and faculty in order to make everyone aware of the sexual assaults over the past two weeks.
A third sexual assault that took place near East Towne Mall on Dec. 6 has not been linked to the campus-area attacker.
Hanson said police are taking any and all leads, but so far no arrests have been made. He also acknowledged the serious nature of the assaults and said students should ""be very aware of what's going on."" Newton said students should try to utilize campus resources, such as SAFEride, and walk in groups to remain safe.
""Overall Madison is a safe place,"" Newton said. ""But there are always going to be people who prey on others.""
However, with finals approaching and 3 a.m. walks inevitable, some students say they are left with few options to get home with another person. UW-Madison junior Mary Jane Adkins said students cannot always rely on the SAFE services, especially SAFEcab. Still she said there are not many options. Adkins lives on Langdon Street and believes going home alone is a bad idea even though it is a short walk home from campus libraries.
""I have lived on Langdon for two years,"" Adkins said. ""I've definitely felt more concerned walking to my house from my car than ever before.""
Berquam said she recommends students look into extending the hours of SAFEwalk and SAFEride to help out through finals week. In the near- and long-term future, keeping campus safe will require a complete effort from everyone in the UW-Madison community, she said.
""We are a target,"" Berquam said. ""We need to take more responsibility toward personal safety.
