Rollins College ups security after students report incidents of stalking

Rollins College is upping its security after a string of students reported being followed by strangers on the outskirts of the college campus.

Four female students from Rollins College called campus security last month after they experienced similar instances of being followed.

But the four incidents are believed to involve four different potential suspects.

“In each instance, according to the students, the men exhibited concerning, aggressive behavior that led the women to fear for their personal safety,” said an email sent out to students by Rollins’ Director of Campus Security Kenneth Miller. “Due to the descriptions that we have been provided, we do not believe the same male was involved in each case – these are separate cases with separate men.”

One incident took place on Sept. 9 inside the SunTrust parking garage off of Fairbanks Avenue. Campus Security received a call at 5:38 p.m. from a female student that she was being followed. Two Campus Security officers arrived at the scene, but could not find the student or the suspect in question.

“Campus Safety has been actively gathering information about this case,” Miller wrote in the email. “We are sharing this information with Winter Park Police Department to hopefully identify the responsible person and deter similar occurrences in the future.”

Over the past two weeks, Rollins College added more safety escort staff, reported all details to the Winter Park Police Department and reviewed its safety on campus in general.

Rollins College has made several security improvements to the SunTrust garage in recent years, including brighter LED lights, 24 surveillance cameras and extending the hours of garage employees to 10 p.m. to ensure students are leaving safely.

Sgt. John Bologna of the Winter Park Police Department said that suspicious activity happening off campus should be reported to the police.