UAB Robbery Suspect.jpg

UAB officials released this surveillance photo of an unidentified suspect in the robbery of four students attacked Monday, Oct. 13, 2014 in the 16th Street Parking Deck.

((UAB Police Department))

BIRMINGHAM, Alabama - Four UAB students attacked in a campus parking deck Monday night were forced to commit sexual acts, authorities confirmed this evening.

The two female undergraduate students were forced at gunpoint to perform oral sex on the male victims, said Jefferson County sheriff's Sgt. Brian Allison, a Crime Stoppers coordinator. Crime Stoppers aired a segment on the UAB robbery and assaults.

Allison also confirmed all four victims - which included two males - were forced to strip. They later ran to a nearby restaurant for help.

The holdup and subsequent assaults happened about 10:30 p.m. in the 16th Street Parking Deck on 16th Street and 10th Avenue South. UAB Police Chief Anthony Purcell said earlier today the students were leaving a residence hall on their way to get something to eat when the gunman approached them. One shot was fired during the holdup, but no one was injured by a bullet.

Earlier in the day, UAB officials neither confirmed nor denied the sexual assaults. "Because it's an ongoing investigation, we don't want to confirm that at this particular point,'' Purcell said at an afternoon press conference. "But later on in the investigation, depending how this goes, we might be willing to share additional information."

"We have to protect privacy rights,'' he said, "and at this particular point there's some protected information we can't share."

Purcell said three of the four students, however, were injured and taken to the UAB Hospital emergency room for treatment. "One of the male students was roughed up pretty good,'' Purcell said. "The two other students received some injuries as well, and one student did not."

Purcell said the victims were robbed of their wallets, purses and cell phones. Those taken to the hospital were treated and released.

The chief said they are working the investigation with the Birmingham Police Department and also reached out to the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force for assistance. A UAB police officer is part of the task force, so it was a natural move to enlist the FBI's help, Purcell said.

Both Purcell and UAB President Ray Watts said they have retrieved video surveillance from the attack. "We have video surveillance and we have different methods that we use that we send out to other law enforcement agencies as well as the court system to help us identify the suspect as quickly as possible,'' Purcell said.

Authorities have described the suspect only as a black male wearing a white t-shirt and gray athletic pants. "That's the general description we can give because that's what we know,'' Purcell said. "We feel pretty good about the description, and the video surveillance.''

They released a photograph taken from surveillance cameras in the parking deck, and hoped that photo combined with a $5,000 reward would lead to swift identification and capture.

"Let there be no mistake, we have a very good image of this person's face on our cameras,'' said UAB President Ray Watts "There's not going to be any ambiguity about that."

Also today, police announced an unrelated kidnapping and robbery of another UAB student that happened Monday afternoon outside of University House, an off-campus student residence complex. Birmingham police arrested a 19-year-old man in that case, and said he already faced charges of two similar carjackings of female UAB students that happened near there in February and March.

Last week, on Oct. 7, UAB police officers responded to a robbery call at 9:15 a.m. in the University House Apartments parking deck. The female student said she was getting in her car when a man approached her and shoved her against the wall. The victim's purse was taken and she complained of minor shoulder pain.

Purcell and Watts maintained that despite this week's attacks, the campus is safe. "Safety and security is our top priority - that's what we do as a law enforcement agency,'' Purcell said. "We're going to increase patrols in and around the campus, and also at our off-campus properties."

UAB police offer these safety tips for robbery on the police department's website:

- Being robbed may be one of the scariest things that you will ever face. It's important to remain calm and don't show fear.

- If at all possible, walk with others---there is safety in numbers.

- Never resist a robber. The robber wants your valuables, not you! Items can always be replaced...you can't.

- Always be aware of your surroundings and stay in lighted areas at night. The robber does not want to be seen.

-Everything that you remember about the person can help the police in their investigation. The police will want to know what they were wearing, facial appearance, scars, tattoos, hair color, eye color, vehicle information (tag, color and type), and anything else that would make this person stand out.

-Immediately call the police after the robbery.

Purcell asked that anyone with information on the Monday night attack call the UAB Police Department at 205-934-4434 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.

Corrected to say the students were forced to perform sex acts on the male victims, not the suspect.