Durham Police Department officers responded to an armed robbery involving a female undergraduate and two male graduate students that occurred outside the Whole Foods Market on Broad Street in Durham early Tuesday morning.
As the three students walked through the parking lot of the grocery store-located just steps away from East Campus-at about 3 a.m., a man got out of a black Nissan Pathfinder holding a semiautomatic weapon, the students told police officers.
The students told police there was a second man in the car during the incident.
The man held the students at gunpoint and ordered them to hand over cash, credit cards, cell phones and an iPod before returning to the vehicle, which then sped down Broad Street.
None of the students were injured in the incident, according to police reports.
Duke University Police Department Maj. Michael Snellgrove said there are no leads regarding the suspects, but added that DPD is pursuing the case.
"DPD is responsible for the investigation," he said. "Because students were involved, naturally [DUPD] were very much interested in locating the suspects. We're looking for them as well."
Larry Moneta, vice president for student affairs, sent an e-mail to students Tuesday informing them of the incident and reminding them that they are a "target for robbery and are especially vulnerable late in the night or in the very early morning hours."
Moneta added in an interview that the administration has made an effort to reach out to the three students involved in the robbery.
Snellgrove said armed robberies within such a close proximity to Duke's campus are a rare occurrence.
"It's very out of the ordinary," he said. "This university has not had many armed robbery reports."
Dean of Students Sue Wasiolek said the robbery hits home for the many students who frequent Whole Foods, a popular grocery store that specializes in selling healthy and locally grown food products.
"Maybe [students aren't there] at three in the morning, but the parking lot at Whole Foods is a place where many of us find ourselves at often," she said.
Aaron Graves, associate vice president for campus safety and security, said the incident was likely a "crime of opportunity"-an isolated event that is unconnected to other robberies.
"When you are out at 3:30 in the morning, people trying to make a crime see this as an opportunity," he said.
Wasiolek said she has heard reports that the three students are shaken up by the experience but are grateful they were not injured.
"They are certainly unnerved by the situation, as anyone would be," she said. "But [they are] glad that they're not harmed. It's just frightening."
Moneta said he hopes Student Affairs will keep in touch with the students involved in the incident as he understands that being a victim of armed robbery can cause "psychological damage."
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