MEMPHIS, Tenn. — A University of Memphis student reported they were carjacked by men with guns — while on campus — and other university attendees are weighing in on the incident.
At 7:47 p.m., a student reported they were approached while parked on Walker near Ellington Hall, and they said four masked men with guns pulled up in a blue sedan and took a silver 2019 Hyundai, according to an alert from U of M Police Services.
“The safety concerns on this campus and carjackings have been persistent since my tenure here, [and] I’m a sophomore," Richard Massey U of M student and local organizer said.
This attack comes just weeks after U of M announced $5 million in planned security upgrades.
While the university's police services protects the campus the Office of Planning and Design is in charge of these latest security upgrades that U of M said back in August would, among other things, increase the perimeter fencing; bulk up parking lot access controls, increase led lighting and enhance 24/7 camera monitoring.
“They send like the safety alerts and I think they were giving out those stirring wheel lock things," U of M Freshmen Chasden Luster said.
On Friday, the university wouldn't detail the progress made so far, leaving students wanting more specifics and action.
"I think they should definitely do like a better job with the cameras," Luster said.
Massey said he believes the problem goes beyond the school and even the city.
“I believe that the university has really maximized its resources," Massey said. "At this point, it’s become a state issue. "[We] have laws being implemented of the likes of guns in trucks, laws such as permitless carry. It’s really incentivized these carjackings more than anything."