The suspect is reportedly not a Rider University student.
LAWRENCE -- An arrest has been made in connection with the two incidents of female students being touched sexually while slept in their dorm rooms at Rider University, the Rider News reported late Friday.
The student-run newspaper reported Rider's dean of students Anthony Campbell announced the arrest in a statement to the Rider community via email late Friday. The statement did not name the suspect.
Campbell's email said that the suspect is not a Rider student, the Rider News reported.
"On behalf of the entire Rider University community, we wish to convey our appreciation and gratitude to all the members of law enforcement, especially the Lawrence Township Police Department," the statement said, the Rider News reported.
"The safety and well-being of our campus communities are of the utmost importance to us, and a responsibility we take very seriously. This has been a time of collaboration - a true team effort - between our students, staff, faculty and others to address everyone's questions and concerns surrounding these incidents," the statement said.
A Lawrence police spokesman confirmed an arrest Friday evening, but said the investigators were still out working on the case and more information would be available Saturday.
RELATED: 2 Rider students touched as they slept in their dorm rooms
In addition to the two touching incidents, Lawrence police said this week they were investigating a third incident in which a male was spotted inside a sorority, but was chased away by a male visitor.
The latest touching incident occurred at about 4:40 a.m. this past Sunday, Sept. 27, when a male entered a female student's unlocked dormitory room and touched her breast, police have said.
The touch awakened the student, who screamed and swung her arm at the male, which sent him running from the dorm, police said. He was last seen on foot, and police said they did not know how he entered the dorm.
Lawrence police were called to the campus to investigate and while there Sunday, they learned the campus had a similar incident Sept. 11 in another dorm.
At 3:15 a.m. that day, a sleeping student woke up when a male touched her shoulder. That male also was last seen running from the dorm. The student's room was also unlocked, police said.
This past Saturday, Sept 26, Lawrence police said a male was seen walking through a sorority on campus at 4 a.m., but a male visitor scared the man away. No students reported being touched or accosted during that incident.
At Princeton University last month, two young women have reported males grabbing their buttocks during daytime incidents in front of campus buildings.
Kevin Shea may be reached at kshea@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter@kevintshea. Find The Times of Trenton on Facebook.
