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Tuesday, February 7, 2023

3 Kidnapping Attempts Reported on Campus & the Journalistic Rashomon Effect

Click on image to clarify.

Source: "Clery" notice in https://ucla.app.box.com/v/crime-alert-20230206. The notice makes clear that there were three victims and describes the perpetrator.

The Daily Bruin also carries the story, but doesn't make it clear that the parking structure 7 situation involved two separate victims for a total of three incidents and victims: 

UCPD is searching for a suspect involved in multiple on-campus attempted robberies and kidnappings Sunday afternoon. The first incident took place near Parking Structure 1 around 4:30 p.m. and another occurred near Parking Structure 7 around 6:45 p.m., according to a UCPD crime alert sent Monday afternoon. In both cases, the suspect reportedly grabbed the victims, demanded money, refused to let them go and threatened to take the victims to another location. The suspect also claimed to be armed.

The victims are UCLA students, according to the crime alert. Officials described the suspect as a 25 to 40 year old Black man with a slim build and short dark hair wearing a dark blue shirt and light blue jeans. The suspect also held an orange or red blanket with him during the second incident. One victim, from the second incident, suffered injuries to her hand. The victims were able to free themselves in both cases.

This case is currently under investigation. Anyone with information can call UCPD at 310-825-1491.

https://dailybruin.com/2023/02/06/ucpd-searches-for-suspect-involved-in-on-campus-attempted-robberies-kidnappings

Patch newspapers' version gets the number of victims right, but it gives an incomplete description of the perpetrator (to avoid profiling?):

Three women were robbed by a man who also attempted to kidnap them near ULCA (sic) campus parking structures Sunday, prompting authorities to warn students to be on alert.

The women were students attacked by the same man about two hours apart Sunday evening, according to the UCLA Police Department. In each case, the women were able to pull free from their attacker's grasp.

The first attack occurred around 4:30 p.m. Sunday near Parking Structure 1. The man approached a woman, demanded money and attempted to kidnap her, according to police. He held her hands together and refused to let go as she struggled to get free, the woman told police. She gave him her money, and he attempted to take her to another location, according to police. The attacker claimed to have a gun, but the woman told police she didn't see a weapon. She slipped from his grasp and got away.

According to police, the same man approached two women near Parking Structure 7 at about 6:45 p.m. In two separate instances, the man robbed and attempted to kidnap two more women who each escaped him, according to police. The second victim escaped with scratches on her hands, police reported.

According to police, the suspect was described as between 25 and 40 years old, 5 feet, 10 inches tall, dark hair, brown eyes, and a slim build. He was last seen wearing a dark blue shirt with white lettering and light blue jeans. According to police, he had a red/orange blanket during the second incident.

The UCLA Police Department is reminding students and staff to:

• Dial 9-1-1 in the event of an emergency.

• For non-emergencies, program the UCLA PD 24-hour phone number into your cell phone – 310-825-1491.

• Always be alert and aware of your surroundings

• Report any suspicious activity to the police

• Do not leave doors to buildings propped open

• Secure your residence by locking all windows and doors

• Avoid poorly-lit or deserted areas when walking at night

• Utilize the UCLA Safe Ride Service and UCPD CSO evening escorts 

https://patch.com/california/santamonica/s/iklk1/3-ucla-students-attacked-by-wouldbe-kidnapper.

Finally, the LA Daily News gets the number wrong (probably from reading the Daily Bruin story?) and also gives an incomplete description (from reading Patch?):

Two female UCLA students were assaulted by the same man near two campus parking structures, the UCLA Police Department announced Monday. The man approached the first victim around 4:30 p.m. Sunday near Parking Structure 1. He demanded money, attempted to kidnap the victim, held her hands together and refused to let go. The suspect claimed he had a gun. However, none was seen or discovered, police said. The man approached the second victim around 6:45 p.m. Sunday near Parking Structure 7 and committed similar acts, police said.

In both cases, the victims were able to pull away from the suspect and leave the area. One victim from the second incident sustained scratches to her hand, police said. The suspect was described as between 25 and 40 years old, 5 feet, 10 inches tall, dark hair, brown eyes and a slim build. He was last seen wearing a dark blue shirt with lettering and light blue jeans. During the second incident, the suspect was last seen with a red/orange blanket.

Source: https://www.dailynews.com/2023/02/06/man-assaults-2-female-students-near-ucla-parking-structures/.

What we seem to have is a Rashomon effect, but involving journalists rather than those actually involved:

Rashomon is a 1950 Jidaigeki psychological thriller-crime film directed and written by Akira Kurosawa, working in close collaboration with cinematographer Kazuo Miyagawa. Starring Toshiro Mifune, Machiko Kyō, Masayuki Mori, and Takashi Shimura as various people who describe how a samurai was murdered in a forest, the plot and characters are based upon Ryunosuke Akutagawa’s short story "In a Grove", with the title and framing story being based on "Rashōmon", another short story by Akutagawa. Every element is largely identical, from the murdered samurai speaking through a Shinto psychic to the bandit in the forest, the monk, the assault of the wife and the dishonest retelling of the events in which everyone shows his or her ideal self by lying.

The film is known for a plot device that involves various characters providing subjective, alternative and contradictory versions of the same incident. Rashomon was the first Japanese film to receive a significant international reception; it won the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival in 1951, was given an Academy Honorary Award at the 24th Academy Awards in 1952, and is considered one of the greatest films ever made. The Rashomon effect is named after the film.

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rashomon.

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