Nov. 12 (UPI) — A group of young people, including several Temple University students, were held at gunpoint and robbed during a home invasion in Philadelphia, police said.
A group of 11 people — men and women, between the ages of 20 and 22 — were sleeping at an off-campus residence in the city on Friday when two men wearing hoodies and masks entered the residence armed with handguns, according to authorities.
Victims said the invaders gathered the occupants into the basement and proceeded to rob them and the residence, taking credit cards, cash, cellphones and the keys to a 2015 silver Lincoln MKZ.
The female victims were asked to sign out of iCloud on their phones and remove their passwords.
The gunmen stayed at the residence for approximately one hour before leaving in the stolen Lincoln, which police say has the Pennsylvania license plate number KMF1560.
The occupants then used laptops to contact family and police.
“The most important thing is that no students were hurt or injured during this incident, which will continue to be investigated by the Philadelphia Police Department,” Temple University officials told WCAU-TV in a statement.
Police are investigating a separate incident in which three Temple University sophomores were held at gunpoint and robbed by three masked intruders in their home on Wednesday morning. The intruders quickly left the premises after forcing Barone to unlock her phone and realizing she had already called 911.
“Violence against one of us, affects all of us. Any incident affecting a member of our community is treated with the utmost care and concern,” Temple University Vice President of Public Safety Jennifer Griffin said in a statement.
