A Syracuse University freshman was robbed at gunpoint by two men between the Irving Avenue parking garage and Sadler Hall at 2:30 a.m. Saturday, said Department of Public Safety Deputy Chief Drew Buske. One man showed what appeared to be a sawed off shotgun.

Ben Tepfer, a television, radio and film major and former assistant news editor at The Daily Orange, said the pair took his cell phone and his wallet, which had $10, his driver’s license, SU ID and Bank of America card. He was not injured.

After pushing Tepfer up against a fence and robbing him, the pair ran north on Irving Avenue and got into a silver-colored sedan driven by a third male suspect, Buske said. The sedan drove south on Irving Avenue and then west on East Raynor Avenue, which would be the last time the three suspects were seen, he said.

Tepfer said he was walking to Sadler Hall when he noticed a sedan drive slowly past him. A few minutes later, he noticed two men walking toward him.

Half a block from Sadler, the man asked Tepfer what possessions he had while the other pulled out the shotgun and threatened to shoot if he did not give everything up. Tepfer gave them his cell phone, wallet and keys.

The man searched Tepfer and told him to leave the scene. Tepfer said the men threw the keys at him and got into the sedan as he walked away.

Tepfer said the thing that surprised him most was that the men chose a spot close to campus where DPS patrols regularly.

‘I thought, ‘I’m right in front of Sadler, I’m not going to get shot,” Tepfer said.

Tepfer said he wished he had been more aware of his surroundings and had run when he first noticed the sedan.

Buske declined to provide details about an ongoing investigation. Syracuse Police Department Sgt. David Sackett said he could not comment about the investigation Monday.

adbrow03@syr.edu

Published on April 13, 2009 at 12:00 pm