Anderson Hall robber sentenced to 17-35 years

The man who beat and robbed an Intellectual Heritage professor in his Anderson Hall office last October will face 17 to 35 years in prison, according to court documents.

Darryl Moon, 46 of Philadelphia, pleaded guilty to charges of aggravated assault and robbery in a June hearing. He received his sentence yesterday, and today the Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County released Moon’s criminal docket.

Moon entered Anderson on Oct. 29, 2013 and went up to the Intellectual Heritage offices on the second floor. He punched the victim in the face, demanding his wallet before putting a knife to the professor’s throat, according to a post on the Philadelphia Police website. After obtaining the wallet, Moon hit the victim again.

The 81-year-old professor suffered lacerations to his face and head in addition to swelling and bleeding in his brain. He is not scheduled to teach classes this semester.

A security camera caught Moon leaving Anderson through the second floor mezzanine doors, which were sealed off this summer to improve security.

Philadelphia police arrested Moon on Oct. 31.

New technology to affect security personnel

The project to add new security measures in Anderson and Gladfelter halls will force a redistribution of campus security personnel when delayed egress doors are implemented in the entrances to both buildings, according to Campus Safety Services.

Acting Director of CSS Charlie Leone said any officers who are not assigned to any of the two buildings will be reassigned to other parts of the campus. Once the doors are updated, it will be monitored electronically with the alarm system.

“It will include redeployment of the security personnel,” he said, “particularly using extra help during class changes with heavy pedestrian volume, as well as roving patrols.”

The idea to carry out the project came when a teacher from Anderson Hall was attacked last year in his office.

In late October, an 81-year-old professor was robbed and assaulted at knifepoint. Darryl Moon, 45, was later arrested by the Philadelphia Police about 12 hours after police officials identified the suspect via video surveillance.

Ambler safe after alerts of armed individual, CSS says.

Temple’s Ambler Campus is safe and students are advised to continue their schedules as normal after reports of an armed individual in a parking lot were deemed not credible, Deputy Director of Campus Safety Services Charlie Leone said.

Shortly before 1 p.m. Friday afternoon, Leone said an administrator at the campus offices received a phone call warning of an armed individual in the parking lot. Temple and Upper Dublin Township Police investigated and found no such individual.

The campus was not locked down, Leone said, and no alert was issued to students until a general TU Advisory was issued throughout the student body notifying them of the incident shortly after 3 p.m.

While no official lockdown was issued, Leone said there was unofficial communication between the Ambler staff about staying inside.

Leone said that the campus was never in danger and CSS only chose to issue the alert after they received numerous calls from students who had heard rumors and inquired whether it was safe to return to class.

Police investigating campus fraud

University police are investigating an incident of fraud at PNC Bank on Liacouras Walk, said Deputy Director of Campus Safety services Charlie Leone.

On April 22, a Temple student attempted to help an unknown male cash a check for $100. The student gave the male $100 cash, and then attempted to deposit the check in to his account. The student was informed this week by PNC that the check was fraudulent and notified authorities.

The incident is not the first of its kind- Leone said that a similar incident occurred with another student within the last few weeks. “It sounds like the same guy,” he said. “I’m pretty confident that we will have an arrest on this.”

Leone said that police are working with PNC to indentify the suspect, and said they are looking for a white or Latino male, 6 feet tall, medium build and scruffy facial hair. He cautioned any student that is approached by someone asking for help cashing a check to contact police immediately.

Steps collapse at party

A party west of Main Campus took a scary turn Friday night when the basement steps collapsed, leaving party goers stuck in the basement, said Deputy Director of Campus Safety Services.

Police and firefighters arrived at the party on the 1700 block of Arlington Street at approximately 11:35 p.m., Leone said in an email, and helped students out of the basement and to safety. No injuries were reported, Leone said.

The residents of the house on Arlington Street were unavailable for comment Saturday afternoon and Leone said the students will be in contact with their landlord.

Pipe burst leads to early morning evacuation

A pipe burst in room 1002 early this morning in Johnson Hall, causing Temple police and firefighters to respond to an alarm which went off at 4:15 a.m., Deputy Director of Campus Safety Services Charlie Leone said.

Freshman biology major Ashley Rapp is one of the two students staying in room 1002 and said she noticed that a pipe in her room was making strange noises.

“I woke up and there was a screeching noise and I thought it was the air conditioner. I stepped in really hot water. I saw really dark brown water coming out of the vents,” Rapp said.

Rapp said she quickly moved the belongings under her bed off the floor and notified security and an on-duty resident assistant. Upon returning to her room, Rapp said the fire alarm was going off and quickly spread to the whole building. She said students quickly filled out of Johnson once the alarm sounded.

“The people on this floor were more concerned because they knew it was coming from this room. But the whole room turned from where you could see to where you couldn’t see anything,” Rapp said. “It was complete fog and steam.”

The fire sprinklers in the room did not go off, which Rapp said saved some of her personal belongings from being completely damaged. Rapp said that everything under her bed and her electronics received water damage.

Rapp said she was not sure if she would be compensated for the loss of her belongings. She said the Resident Director of Johnson Hall Megan Connelly would be working with her and maintenance to assess the amount of property that had been lost.

Connelly and Housing of Residential Life declined to comment on the incident.

“They said that it was alright to try to see if the TV worked and try the laptop and they tried to see if the electricity was secure to turn back on, “ Rapp said.

Rapp is communicating with Residential Life to inform them on how much damage their was to her belongings at which time she said they will “come in and check internally” to determine if she will receive compensation for her losses.

Rapp said that students were outside for no more than 30 minutes and then were allowed to go back into the building.

Rapp said that when repairs were made,she was told a cap had been worn down on the pipe, causing pressure and the pipe to burst out hot water and steam. Leone said engineers informed him that it was also due to previous water damage and was in no way the fault of the student. Though this was a serious incident, Leone said no students were injured and Temple officials had control over the situation.

Rapp has been given permission to safely return and stay in her room at this time.

Sexual assault reported in Temple Towers

A sexual assault was reported Monday morning, stemming from an incident that occurred in Temple Towers during the weekend, said Deputy Director of Campus Safety Services Charlie Leone.

The case involves two Temple students, an 18-year-old female victim and an 18-year-old man. No charges have been filed yet and the case has been referred to the Philadelphia Police’s Special Victim’s Unit, Leone said.

Leone said that along with being referred to the Special Victim’s Unit, the case has also been referred to the Student Code of Conduct through the university. He said alcohol was involved.

Check back with temple-news.com for more information as it becomes available.

 

Updated: Sexual assault reported in White Hall

A sexual assault was reported Wednesday stemming from an incident that occurred last week said Deputy Director of Campus Safety Services Charlie Leone.

Leone said the sexual assault happened at approximately 11:50 p.m. on Jan. 24, in White Hall, which normally houses freshmen. The victim, a 19-year-old woman and the suspect, a 19-year-old man, were both students and knew each other, Leone said.

The case has been referred to the Philadelphia Police Department Special Victims Unit and will be referred to the Student Code of Conduct, Leone said. No charges have been filed as of Thursday afternoon.

Check back with temple-news.com for more information as it becomes available.

Res. Life warns before storm

Univeristy Housing and Residential Life sent out a mass email to students living in Main Campus residence halls Wednesday night, warning of impending thunderstorms and heavy rain.

The email advised students living in those residence halls to close all windows to help seal out the wind and rain, minimizing water damage.

The National Weather Service issued a flash flood watch and wind advisory for Philadelphia County for the night of Jan. 30, extending into early Thursday morning, with heavy rains and gusts of up to 50 mph.

Students in need of help are encouraged to call Campus Safety Services at 215-204-1234 or the Temple Weather Hotline at 215-204-1975.

Campus prepares for Hurricane Sandy

The National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration has issued a hazardous weather outlook for Philadelphia and surrounding counties in the Delaware Valley region in preparation for Hurricane Sandy, which is projected to make landfall in the Chesapeake Bay area early next week, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Reports from the NHC said that while Sandy weakened slightly over the Bahamas, the storm still has a maximum sustained wind speed of 75 mph, and is moving up the coast at 7 mph.

Beginning on Monday, the National Weather Service predicts tropical storm conditions in Philadelphia, continuing until Tuesday with rain lingering into Wednesday evening. Heavy snow fall is also predicted for more inland areas of the East Coast.

Deputy Director of Campus Safety Services Charlie Leone said that the university has been working to prepare for the storm by cleaning sewers and drainage pipes, securing trash can lids, going over emergency procedures and keeping up to date on the forecast.

Leone also said that while the university is taking steps to ensure a safety, students, especially those living off-campus, need to use the weekend to make sure they are stocked up with proper emergency equipment such as food, water, and batteries, as well as keeping track of the weather reports.

“Keep in mind what would happen if your power were to go out, would you have enough things to sustain you?,” Leone said.

Leone said that CSS will continue to look at weather reports and talk with university officials into next week regarding class and program closures, as well as the use of the TU Alert system.

Students and faculty can contact Temple Emergency Preparedness and Continuity Planning at tuready@temple.edu. Additionally, those in need of help can call CSS at 215-204-1234 or call 911.

The Temple News will continue to monitor and report on the latest campus news regarding Hurricane Sandy.

John Moritz can be reached at john.moritz@temple.edu or on Twitter @JCMoritzTU.