Police investigate 3 assaults near Harvard

(Dina Rudick/Globe Staff/file)

Three students have been assaulted in May near the campus of
Harvard University.

By Kate Augusto, Globe Correspondent

Cambridge police are investigating the third attack this month of a student near Harvard University after a male undergraduate was tackled from behind Wednesday night and physically assaulted, according to an advisory issued to students.

The student was walking near Grant and Banks streets at 9 a.m. when he was attacked. The student fought back and was able to escape without injury, the advisory said.

The student described the perpetrator as a man in his 20s with a medium build, a large scar on his forehead, and a light goatee. Campus police are working with Cambridge police, but no suspects have been identified, said Joe Wrinn, a Harvard spokesperson.

It was not immediately clear if the three attacks are connected. Cambridge police did not immediately return a phone message seeking comment.

The first assault occurred May 6 near the school’s Lamont Library on Quincy Street, according to the Harvard Crimson newspaper and Harvard police logs. A man snuck up on a female student from behind and put a wire around her neck. The student kicked her attacker and fled.

A fourth possible assault was reported at 12:50 a.m. on May 11 at the Widener Gate on Harvard Yard, according to the logs. Police were dispatched to the scene of a reported assault but the alleged victim left before officers arrived.

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