Dear campus community member:
We want to provide more information regarding a incident that prompted an Illini-Alert emergency notification this morning. This message alone is not necessarily an indication that crime rates on campus have increased or that a pattern of crime has emerged. For a more comprehensive look at crime in your area, you can view the daily crime log.
Your assistance is needed.
University Police are investigating and ask that anyone submit potential photo or video evidence of the incident or suspects through our Evidence Submission Portal. Evidence may be submitted anonymously, but we encourage you to share your contact information to ensure that a thorough investigation can proceed.
Anyone with general information is encouraged to contact University Police at 217-333-1216. Witnesses may remain anonymous by calling Champaign County Crime Stoppers at 217-373-8477 (373-TIPS), by visiting 373tips.com or by providing information through the P3 Tips mobile app available on iOS and Android. All messages to Crime Stoppers are electronically stripped of identifying information and forwarded to police by an independent third party.
At 4:20 a.m. Sunday, multiple 911 callers indicated that shots had been fired outside a large house party in the 600 block of South Third Street, Champaign (map).
Preliminary investigation suggests that two men at the party became involved in an altercation, which escalated into both producing firearms and attempting to shoot the other. One uninvolved bystander, a U. of I. student, sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was taken by ambulance to a local hospital.
Witnesses said one of the suspects is a Hispanic man with short brown hair, a beard, neck tattoos and a brown trench coat. The other suspect is a Hispanic man with braided hair and a blue shirt.
Information about the race or ethnicity of alleged offenders is provided only to aid detailed descriptions that include physical stature, clothing or unusual characteristics. Racial descriptions do not, by themselves, offer a meaningful picture of an individual’s appearance.
University Police officers are patrolling the campus area. More than 2,500 security cameras are posted around campus to deter crime and identify offenders.
This is our community. Let’s stay together.
The University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign campus is a safe one, but a community of our size will never be crime-free. University Police and its partner law enforcement agencies work hard to prevent crime and to quickly identify and arrest offenders when crime occurs, but you play the most important role in keeping our campus community safe.
- Stay together. Do not walk alone at night. Travel in groups and in well-lit areas. Call 217-333-1216 for a SafeWalks escort if you need one.
- Be alert. Maintaining awareness of your surroundings is critical, especially when traveling at night. Wearing headphones or looking at your phone diminishes your ability to respond to your surroundings. Walk with purpose, and stay attentive.
- Trust your instincts. If it doesn’t feel right, it probably isn’t. Call police if something looks odd — we’re happy to assist, and even the smallest bit of information could prevent another crime.
- Watch out for each other. Call 911 immediately if you or someone else is in danger. The University encourages students to take appropriate action to protect others’ safety by reducing students’ fear of legal or disciplinary consequences to the victim or themselves. For more information, please review the Medical Amnesty and Survivor Protections.
- If you choose to consume alcohol, please be responsible. Remember your ability to respond is diminished by overconsumption of alcohol.
- Promptly report crime or suspicious activity. It is more likely that police will be able to identify and apprehend offenders when crimes are reported immediately. Reporting crime or suspicious activity can help to prevent similar incidents from happening again.
If you become concerned about a friend or yourself as a result of this incident, the Student Assistance Center (SAC) can help. Staff in the SAC are available Monday through Friday between 8:30-5 p.m. Additionally, the Emergency Dean Program provides a university administrator who is on-call to assist in health or safety emergency situations that occur after business hours and require an immediate university response. Call 217-333-0050 to reach the SAC or the Emergency Dean. Additional information about these programs and others is available at odos.illinois.edu/community-of-care.
Please take a moment to review these resources we have made available to keep you informed: