LOGAN — Police are asking Utah State University students to be alert after a report of a sexual assault at knifepoint near the campus. Police don’t have many details, but they want people to be vigilant and aware.
Logan police believed it happened late Sunday night or early Monday morning in the Logan City Cemetery, which borders the USU campus. Because it’s so close by, campus police are asking everyone to watch out for themselves and others.
“It did make me really anxious about it, like it scared me,” Lynn Sullivan, a student at the university, said.
Students like Sullivan said they are grateful to be kept in the loop so they can be more self-aware.
“I feel like that’s a good fear to have if it’s happening,” Sullivan told KSL-TV. “And it’s just good to have people know about it and really just be extra cautious.”
Logan police said they don’t know a whole lot right now, just that a woman reported being sexually assaulted at knifepoint.
“We were informed that the victim did not want to have law enforcement involved,” Curtis Hooley, assistant chief of the Logan Police Department, said. “She was willing to have a sexual assault exam completed, which she did.”
Hooley said the fact that they have that evidence is important, and it’s not unusual for victims to want to take some time.
“There’s all types of people in regards to how they deal with that stress. And it isn’t uncommon for people not to talk to law enforcement, especially in the first few days,” Hooley told KSL-TV.
But with the few details, he said it’s not clear if the attacker was known to the victim or was a stranger. Administrators at Utah State University said it’s important to make students aware both of what happened and the resources available, which is why an email was sent to students and employees.
“Usually these things, I feel like they don’t really happen on campus, or this close to campus usually, because there’s just so many people,” Reya Thruman, a USU student, said. “So the fact that it was so close to campus is kind of worrisome.”
The cemetery does get a lot of pedestrian traffic from students. Police are asking everyone to not go alone, and be aware of their surroundings. Campus police want students to know they can always call police to ask for a walk home, or make the request in the Aggie Safe app.
If you have experienced sexual violence, you can access help and resources by calling Utah’s 24-hour Sexual Violence Help Line at 1-801-736-4356 (English) or 1-801-924-0860 (Spanish). You can also call the Rape Recovery Center office line during office hours at 801-467-7282 or the National Sexual Assault Hotline at 1-800-656-4673 for free, confidential counseling.
