For Josh Cippel '08, doing laundry on a Thursday night has taken on a whole new meaning.
A man in a ski mask wielding a knife attempted to rob Cippel in the laundry room at a College-leased School Street apartment on Thursday, November 3. His muffled voice demanded, "Gimme all your money, kid."
Cippel was carrying no cash at the time.
The crime was foiled by what Cippel called a "completely instinctual response."
"All of a sudden," Cippel said, "I just wheeled around and clocked him on the side of the face" with a large bottle of Tide liquid laundry detergent.
The unidentified man, who at 6'1" wore a green plaid shirt and jeans, "was obviously not expecting a fight, so he just took off," according to Cippel. "I ran after him and he ran up the steps and took off into the [night]," Cippel added.
Brunswick Police and Bath Police responded after Cippel called 911.
A K-9 unit from Bath including a dog named Keylo followed the attacker's tracks to the area of Whittier Field, but no farther.
The crime is under active investigation by the Brunswick Police Department with assistance from Bowdoin Security. At this time they have no specific leads and the suspect is still at large, according to Director of Safety and Security Randall T. Nichols (see related story, page 5).
However, due "to the nature of the crime and the [criminal's] method of operation, which was very specific, I think we've got a lot of...potential investigative leads that will be followed up," Nichols said.
"Realistically," Nichols added in a telephone interview, "I would say the chances are quite good that something will break here with the case. I do feel that the suspect has to be quite local to the area and has probably been involved in crimes in the past...and are probably known to the police... I think it's just a matter of putting the pieces together."
However, that a suspect has yet to be identified is "a concern to us," Nichols added.
It is also a concern for Cippel.
"I hope they find him," he said. "I'll be very interested to see if they do. But if not, I wouldn't be surprised. It's very easy to blend in [to the Brunswick community]."
Within the Bowdoin community, some have raised concerns about the safety of off-campus housing and the safety of the College as a whole. Some School Street residents are particularly concerned given that a crime, called "shocking and unexpected" by Jessica McGreehan '08, took place in their own laundry room.
The attempted robbery "has definitely made us feel less safe," said Perrin Wheeler '07, who lives in the College-leased housing on School Street. "We never used to lock our door?now we make sure it is always locked," she added. "The day after the attack, two of my roommates actually went down into our basement armed with kitchen knives to make sure the trap door was locked!"
Director of Residential Life Kim Pacelli shares students' concerns. On Tuesday, Pacelli went on a "walkabout at the School Street apartments and the Elm Street Apartments...with Randy Nichols and two folks from facilities...just to take a look at things and see what we can do to improve the security there."
"After Thursday night's incident," Pacelli added in a telephone interview, "we're definitely concerned and looking at the security situation at off-campus housing."
Lauren Withey '06, another School Street resident, feels that "The 'administration,' which means mostly ResLife and Security in this case, have been very supportive and helpful through this process. They've kept in close touch with us and have re-secured our apartment complex, installing new lights, fixing locks, etc."
"As for Josh," Withey added, "well, he's our hero."
Cippel has been pleased with the administration's response, in particular that of Nichols who he cited as "extremely professional."
Looking back on the attempted robbery, Cippel feels lucky that events turned out the way they did. The lesson from the incident, as he sees it, is that "the Bowdoin bubble is not all-protective?it's not impenetrable."
"Everyone keeps saying, 'It's Brunswick, Maine and this kind of thing just doesn't happen. And I think the take-away message [from the incident] is not 'be frightened, be petrified, don't leave your house;' it's just 'be vigilant because these things do happen everywhere,'" Cippel said.
"As much as we would like to think that Bowdoin is this isolated community, it's as much a part of the real world as any other school," he added.
And in the real world there are dirty clothes that need to be cleaned.
"Planes crash, but I still fly," Cippel said. "People get in car accidents, but I still drive. And people creep up behind you in the laundry room with knives, but I still do laundry."