Tempe police and ASU officials distributed fliers throughout campus and nearby apartment complexes Wednesday following the off-campus sexual assault of a 19-year-old freshman.
The student was sexually assaulted for approximately 20 minutes Tuesday morning in her apartment on the 600 block of East Mesquite Circle, said Sgt. Mike Horn of Tempe police. The student was in her apartment at the time and was awakened by the suspect on top of her, Horn said.
Tempe police are investigating the sexual assault and have received many leads from the public, but haven't received anything about specific suspects, Horn said.
"We definitely want to hear from anybody who has any information, even if they think it's minor," Horn said. "We want to hear from people who have seen something in the past and haven't done anything about it, we want to know."
Police believe it's likely that the front door was unlocked, he added.
"Don't just assume someone else has locked the door, get up and check," Horn said. "Take the steps to protect yourself and secure your front door and windows."
Drew Radam, a resident of the apartment complex where the assault occurred, said he was surprised by the incident.
"I always thought it was pretty safe living in our apartment complex because it's mostly college students," Radam said.
Biology senior Joe Rotunda said he was shocked and would not expect that to happen at the complex.
"I go there a lot and I wouldn't ever think that would happen there," Rotunda said. "It's awful."
Education freshman Valerie Mazza, who lives in Hassayampa, said the incident makes her concerned about her safety.
"That freaks me out," Mazza said. "It's scary that he's still out there and it makes me worry because he could get into any building."
Tempe police distributed a flier to all apartment complexes in the city, providing information and a composite picture of the suspect, Horn said.
"We want to make sure we get the word out," he said.
ASU has made copies of the flier and distributed them to all residence halls and at the Memorial Union, said Leah Hardesty, a spokeswoman for ASU.
"We highly encourage students to always follow personal safety practices when traveling on campus or anywhere in public," Hardesty said in an e-mail.
Horn said stranger assaults are very rare.
The overwhelming majority of sexual assaults are acquaintance circumstances, he added.
Cmdr. Jim Hardina of ASU police said stranger sexual assaults on campus are not common and there have only been two cases in the seven years he has worked at ASU.
"ASU women are more likely to be sexually assaulted by people they know," Hardina said.
In 2005, there were nine sexual offenses on the ASU campus in residential facilities, according to the campus security police and crime statistics report.
Mazza said she does not feel afraid living in a residential hall on campus.
"I feel safe because you don't see much attention going on in the halls in my dorm," Mazza said.
The city of Tempe had 71 reported sexual assaults in 2006, compared to 72 in 2005 and 86 in 2004, according to FBI statistics.
Hardina said ASU police work with Residential Life and Student Health and Wellness to provide rape prevention classes for residential halls and for fraternities and sororities.
The classes include tips on dorm safety, personal safety, rape prevention and responsible drinking, Hardina said.
ASU police also conduct free self-defense classes for any group of women who want to take the classes, he said.
"We teach options and empower you to make the best decision possible for yourself," Hardina added.
ASU also provides counseling and consultation for any individual who is a sexual assault survivor who is distressed and needs emotional support, said Paul Rock Krech, senior clinical social worker at Counseling and Consultation.
"Counseling and consultations is a good place to start because a lot of people aren't in a state of mind to do a lot of planning, especially after something traumatic like a sexual assault," Krech said. "Then from here they can access a full range of services because we've been doing this for awhile and we've developed a lot of good relationships with a lot of providers."
The sexual assault suspect is described as a 20-year-old white male with a medium build, light colored eyes and some type of facial hair.
Anyone with information related to the crime is asked to contact the Tempe Police Department at (480) 350-8311.
Reach the reporter at: heather.m.turner@asu.edu.
