An NIU student was the victim of an attempted robbery early Friday morning.

At 2:04 a.m. in the 700 block of Annie Glidden Road, the student was walking alone on the sidewalk when she was approached by three men.

One of the suspects asked the student for a cigarette and a lighter and when she reached into her purse to look for them, one of the men demanded her wallet.
The victim then pulled a can of pepper spray from her purse, sprayed the suspect in the face and fled the area. No property was taken.

Police don’t believe the victim was followed, and that the men fled the area after one suspect was sprayed, said Lt. Gary Spangler of the DeKalb Police Department.

Spangler said the way the perpetrators started a conversation with the victim is similar to past robberies, and a connection between the crimes is possible.

“You have to look at them individually, but can’t overlook the obvious,” he said. “For these type of criminals and these type of crimes, the [mode of operation] is generally going to be somewhat the same.”

All comments are moderated before being published. We will not edit your comments, but we also will not approve those that are abusive, off-topic, attack another poster or contain information we know to be libelous or false.

During peak weekday viewing times, most comments will be reviewed within six hours. For more detailed information, click here.

After submitting your comment, check below for a confirmation message.

• Your name:
• Enter text from image:
  

• Your comment:

* 300-character count. HTML formatting will not display.