Police Warn Women to be on Alert in Harvard Square – Seek Information From Public After String of Sexual Assaults

A recent increase in sexual assaults near Harvard Square has prompted police officials to issue a warning to advise women who work and live in the area to be on alert. The most recent in this string of assaults took place on Tuesday night at approximately 8:30 PM. A woman reported that she was indecently assaulted by a man near the intersection of Garden Street and Massachusetts Avenue, stating that the unidentified male bumped into her shoulder before he proceeded to grab her buttocks. When she confronted the man, he fled on foot.

The woman attacked on Tuesday night has stated that the man who assaulted her was a black male in his 20’s, approximately 5’9” to 5’10” tall, with a stocky build and short hair. He was wearing a white t-shirt at the time of the assault. Police have indicated that prior assaults resulted in a similar description of the suspect in question but that they are unsure if the assaults are related. In previous instances, such as the indecent assault that took place on August 30th, police have apprehended suspects in relation to these crimes. The suspect who assaulted the woman on Tuesday night near Harvard Square has yet to be detained by police.

Cambridge Police have been working closely with the Harvard University Police department in an effort to increase awareness and offer extended protection to women who live and work in the area where the assaults have taken place. Additional assaults have been reported by individuals near Garden and Brattle Streets, as well as along Massachusetts Avenue. Cambridge Police have arrested three different individuals in connection to a few of these crimes, but their investigation into further matters is still ongoing. According the release issued by the department, they have stated that they are “cautioning women who live, work or frequent the Harvard Square area to be aware of [the] recent increase…” Harvard University has offered extended shuttle hours to their students, and Cambridge Police have added additional patrols to the Harvard Square area in an effort to maintain a high level of safety.

A spokesman for the Harvard University Police Department, Steven G. Catalano, issued a statement urging those in the area to travel in groups and to utilize the shuttle services available to them in an effort to decrease their vulnerability. The release went on to say that five separate incidents have taken place over a two week period—an extreme hike in assault and battery cases for that particular area. The Cambridge Police Department and Harvard University Police Department are unsure at this time if the crimes in question have any affiliation with Harvard University or their students. The areas where these assaults have taken place are extremely close to the University campus, and they are taking every precaution they can to ensure the safety of their students.

Cambridge Police Department is requesting that anyone that may have necessary information in connection to any of these crimes to please call them at: 617-349-3300.

 

Additional information on the prior assaults as well as further quotes may be found at the following links: http://www.wcvb.com/news/increased-assaults-reported-near-harvard-square/35189146

http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/2015/09/09/police-warn-rise-indecent-assaults-harvard-square/PFXIWcMkIpxqZ38d08JwDJ/story.html

http://www.myfoxboston.com/story/29995801/cambridge-police-highlight-increases-in-assaults-in-harvard-square-area

http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2015/9/10/assault-increase-harvard-square/

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