The Triangle

Issue date: 10/9/09 Section: News

Media Credit: Tara Giancaspro

Two unrelated rapes were reported separately on the University of Pennsylvania campus last week within one day of each other, first Sept. 26 then again Sept. 27.

In the first instance, a female Penn student alleges she was raped at a fraternity house on the 3500 block of Locust Walk. In the second reported rape of that weekend, a female student at Penn stated she had been raped on the 200 block of S. 39th Street around 2 a.m. Sept. 27. Reports show the offender is a male student who knew the victim.

No one has been arrested in Locust Walk case. Philadelphia Police Detective Linda Blowes expressed earlier this week that police do have leads on the suspect's identity. The police department has not publicly identified the name of the fraternity they are investigating, but KYW has reported it was Phi Kappa Sigma. The rape was said to have happened on the dance floor at a party held in the frat house.

In the rape case that was reported on 39 Street, the complainant has chosen not to press charges.

Domenic Ceccanecchio, senior associate vice president of public safety, declined to comment on the specific cases that occurred at Penn. He said, "Our position here is, these are terrible crimes … we try to educate our student body on [rape prevention]."

Lonnie Snyder, founder of Drexel's chapter of One in Four, an organization that aims at educating men about sexual violence, said "It's important for us to be more aware and help our friends if they are ever are sexually assaulted. As a member of One in Four I believe that if a victim says he or she was raped, then it is our duty to believe them. We need to show our support."

On Oct. 6 members of the Penn community gathered near Locust Walk to speak out against sexual violence. A few students shared poems, while others spoke from the heart on the issue. The event provided an outlet for residents of the Penn area and University City to express their concerns about sexual violence.

Since both instances were reported in private residences, there is no heightened threat to public safety. While one instance was reported as an acquaintance rape, the other was a stranger rape. The investigations are ongoing, and no suspects have been publicly named.

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