The Department of Public Safety issued a crime alert yesterday reporting that a 22-year-old Ann Arbor man was robbed outside his home near Arch Street early yesterday morning.
The victim was “minding his own business” and entering the security code to his apartment building at 725 Packard St. when an unknown man approached him forcefully, said Sgt. Richard Kinsey of the Ann Arbor Police Department.
The man claimed to be carrying knives and told the victim to give him all his money, Sgt. Kinsey said.
Because the suspect wasn’t holding a weapon, the victim tried to restrain him so he wouldn’t be able to get a knife, police said. The scuffle led to a physical fight.
“They fought for several minutes,” Sgt. Kinsey said. “At some point, the victim did end up giving up his money.”
The suspect left the area after taking the money, and police are searching for a Toyota vehicle that may have been related to the incident. Police have a partial license plate number for the vehicle, which drove southbound on Packard Street.
The suspect was described as a white male, about 6-foot-3 with a husky build, wearing a dark-colored coat and a light-colored hooded sweatshirt.
The robbery took place in a student-heavy housing area, but police didn’t say whether the victim was a University student.
Kinsey said the case is under investigation.
“By and large, these guys get caught,” he said. “These aren’t very well-thought-out crimes or anything.”
Police were informed of the incident when a person driving down Packard Street saw the fight and called 911. The original police report said there were two suspects, but the victim said there was only one. Sgt. Kinsey said there was probably a mix-up in the initial reporting.
Sgt. Kinsey said he didn’t think the robbery was connected to any other campus crimes.
Anyone with information about the incident can call DPS at 734-763-1131 or the AAPD tip line at 734-996-3199.