A robbery at gunpoint was reported Sunday night inside New Style Pizzeria at the corner of 41st and Chestnut streets, according to the Division of Public Safety.
A UPennAlert was issued at about 7 p.m. informing the Penn community that the suspect is a white male in his early 20s, about 5-foot-10 and was wearing an olive military jacket and a black hat.
College senior Alphonse Tam, who lives about a block away from the restaurant at 40th and Sansom streets, did not see any increased police presence or hear any sirens around the time of the alert.
“[It’s] concerning since we always see Penn Police hanging out” near the station located on the same block as New Style Pizza, Tam said. “You think if something major happened, they’d be more on top of it.”
However, other students seemed less worried. Wharton and Engineering junior Luben Li said he was not concerned about his safety even though he also lives about a block from New Style Pizza.
“Honestly, [the robbery is] not too exciting,” he said.
TIMELINE: History of the UPennAlert system
While Li received the alert after the robbery, he questioned the timeliness of most UPennAlerts. Li appreciated getting the alert, as in the past he hasn’t received them until much after the incident occurred, he said.
Penn Police and AlliedBarton security are currently patrolling the area, DPS spokesperson Stef Karp wrote in an email.
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