A carjacking incident during which a Washington University student was held at gunpoint occurred between Rosedale and Pershing avenues around 7:50 p.m. Sunday.

Around 7:45 p.m. a person reported suspicious activity to the St. Louis Police Department after seeing a person squatting next to his vehicle and trying to open his passenger side door.

Shortly after, at 7:50 p.m. a student was parking her vehicle in the 6100 lot on Waterman Avenue when she observed a person squatting next to a vehicle parked in the same lot. When she was getting out of her vehicle, the person grabbed her backpack while another person stood across the street from her. The first person pulled out a handgun and asked for her car keys, to which she responded that they were in the backpack. They both then took off with her backpack while she ran away and reported the incident to the authorities. No injuries were reported.

The two suspects were both described black males in their early 20s, 6 feet to 6 feet, 2 inches tall, the first with dark clothing, eyeglasses and a short haircut and the other in a black and grey striped shirt.

At the time of publication, St. Louis Police are investigating the incident.

This is the second armed robbery to occur in the two weeks since students have returned to campus for the fall semester. Washington University Chief of Police Mark Glenn sent out an email to the student body addressing safety concerns early this evening.

“In recent weeks, law enforcement agencies across the St. Louis metropolitan area have seen an increase in certain types of criminal activity, including robberies and carjackings,” Glenn wrote in his email. “Unfortunately, the areas around our campuses have not been immune and two such incidents took place in the neighborhoods near the Danforth Campus over the past two weekends involving our students. We are working closely with our partner agencies as they investigate these crimes, and want you to know that we are also taking steps to increase security to keep our surrounding neighborhoods safe.”

In the email, Glenn outlines the Washington University Police Department’s plan of action, which includes adding six WUPD police officers to supplement existing patrols in the afternoons and evenings in residential areas near the Danforth Campus–two each in the neighborhoods north and south of Delmar Boulevard and the Skinker-DeBaliviere neighborhood. They will also be offering “Sidewalk Safetalks” in neighborhoods surrounding campus where community members can meet officers and learn safety tips.