An ongoing investigation is being conducted into the alleged sexual assault that occurred on the Skyline campus on Tuesday, Oct. 25.
According to a press release made by the San Bruno Police Department, the incident took place at roughly 8:30 p.m. on the first floor of Building 1. The victim informed police that she was in a vacant classroom when an unknown male entered and sexually assaulted her, fleeing shortly after.
The suspect is described as a white male, standing at 5’11, between the ages of 25 and 30. He has an athletic build and a tattoo or scar on his neck. The investigation is being conducted by the San Bruno police and is being led by Detective Sergeant Troy Fry.
According to Commander Hanlon of the San Bruno Police Department, information could not be released about the nature of the incident or future courses of action that the police may undertake because the investigation is ongoing. Skyline’s campus security has responded by increasing patrols conducted on the campus in an effort to maintain safety and reassure students, as elaborated by Skyline Chief of Public Safety Brian Tupper.
“We’ve added extra patrols, at least until the month of November,” Tupper said. “Basically, the idea is more visual deterrence.” Tupper
also added that there were certain actions that students could take to further assure their security, such as traveling in a group or requesting a security escort from campus security.
The assault mars what is an otherwise positive security record for Skyline, as indicated by past data from ope.ed.gov, a government website which gives information on frequency of reported crimes of U.S. schools. Only one aggravated assault had occurred in the past three years, and no crimes of a sexual nature had been reported.
Skyline student government has begun to discuss possible means through which to deal with the incident, as elaborated by student government senator Mark Lipkin.
“It (the assault) was mentioned in the meeting,” Lipkin said. “We discussed setting up some sort of support system for the victim, but nothing has been enacted yet.”
Students such as Isabel Maranan have also begun to take their own measures to ensure further safety.
“I have evening classes, and sometimes it is really dark,” Maranan said. “Me and my friends started walking in groups.”
The investigation is ongoing, and any students with any information are urged to call the San Bruno Police at 650-616-7100 or SMCCCD Public Safety at 650-738-4199.
