Man Had Gun, Young Girls In Car In Rutgers Robbery, Police Say

NEW BRUNSWICK, NJ — Police are still searching for the suspects involved in an eerie incident that allegedly happened Tuesday afternoon right outside a main Rutgers dormitory: A Rutgers student claimed he was robbed in broad daylight by a man armed with a gun, who also had two 3-year-old girls and a woman in his car at the time.

Details of the strange incident were released by campus police in a press release Tuesday night. The robbery occurred at approximately 12:30 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, April 10 in front of Campbell Hall, a longstanding Rutgers residence hall on George Street.

The student told police he was walking outside Campbell Hall when a dark-colored Toyota Highlander, pulled up next to him and the driver asked if he had any money to spare for gas. As the student went to get his wallet out, he observed a handgun on the lap of the driver. The driver then told him to get in, police said. The Toyota Highlander was also occupied by an adult woman and two young girls in the backseat, the student said.

Fearing for his safety, the Rutgers student got in and was subsequently driven to a nearby bank located at 112 Somerset Street. He told police he got out, walked into the bank alone, where he withdrew cash, and then went back into the car to hand over the money. The man then drove the student back to the area of Campbell Hall and drove off in a direction away from campus.

The driver is described as a Middle Eastern man, approximately 40 years old, with a full black beard, short black hair, and wearing a short-sleeved t-shirt with khaki pants. The woman was wearing a purple dress and head covering and the two girls were approximately three to four years old.

The Rutgers student was not harmed.

The Rutgers Police Department asks that anyone with information, or who may have been in the area at the time, to contact the Rutgers Police Department Detective Bureau at 848-932-8025.

Photo of Campbell Hall via Rutgers University.