The Office of Public Safety (PSafe) received reports of a trespasser in the Nicolson 5 residence at 12:00 PM on Monday, Jan. 9. According to student testimonies, the intruder took photos of a resident while they were in the shower, and, upon discovery, fled the building. The Middletown Police Department and PSafe have been working to investigate the incident but have not yet named any suspects.

Immediately upon receiving word of the intruder, Director of Public Safety Scott Rohde alerted all Nicolson 5 residents with the details of the incident. Rohde sought to involve students in the investigation by keeping them informed via email and encouraging them to share any relevant information with PSafe.

“A security alert was sent to all students registered to be living on campus when this incident occurred,” Rohde wrote in an email to The Argus. “The purpose was to provide students in the area with notice and request any information should they have seen anything.”

In his email to The Argus, Rohde also mentioned that the presence of intruders in residences is uncommon, although they have occurred in the past.

“The last one I recall was three or four years ago,” Rohde wrote. “In general, they are infrequent.”

The recent intrusion proved challenging to investigate due to a lack of information regarding the perpetrator. Rohde outlined the initial difficulties presented by the investigation.

“Only a limited description [of the perpetrator] was available based on what was observed by the student,” Rohde wrote to The Argus. “The student was also able to provide a description of the perpetrator’s phone.”

Despite the lack of information, PSafe and the Middletown Police Department briefly considered on-campus construction workers as possible suspects.

“It was determined that various work projects were underway during winter break and several different contractors were working in the building,” Rohde wrote. “Several contractors in the area were identified and questioned…[they] were all ruled out as being suspects.”

A rapid response from PSafe officers to the scene of the incident did not ease the worries of Nicolson 5 residents. Vy Pham ’26, a resident of Nicolson 5 at the time of the event, recounted their initial reaction.

“I was disturbed. I worried for the student’s well-being, but I was glad it didn’t happen to me,” Pham wrote in an email to The Argus. “The thought of experiencing that gave me chills.”

Pham discussed the incident with other students, whose responses ranged from exasperation to rage.

“Some reacted with anger and disgust, calling the perpetrator a pervert,” Pham wrote.

Pham noted that the event had incited a dialogue about sexual assault prevention in both gender-neutral and gendered restrooms across campus. While Pham stated that the event has not altered their perception of campus safety as a whole, the invasive nature of the crime has reminded them of the aggressions against marginalized communities that occur on campus and elsewhere.

“As a person of multiple marginalized identities, I’ve come to learn that no place is truly safe for people like me, whether on an interpersonal or structural level,” Pham wrote. “The incident was disturbing, but I’d already known that Wes doesn’t have a shortage of individuals capable of things like this.”

For Rohde, the incident highlighted the role that is played by students in the prevention of on-campus crime.

“Public Safety always encourages vigilance on the part of students,” Rohde wrote. “This means not holding doors for other individuals, including students.”

Pham provided a different perspective, and expressed that the prevention of similar crimes did not come down to greater supervision by PSafe or fellow students. Instead, she promoted less reactionary efforts to curb on-campus crime.

“The solution isn’t punitive measures or increased surveillance by students against students or by PSafe,” Pham wrote. “The solution should be preventative and educational measures.”

 

Aaron Goldberg can be reached at apgoldberg@wesleyan.edu.