Certainly, I’m still in shock about what happened the night of November 5th at 12:10 a.m., and about the lack of security present on campus.
This happened while my friend (Leonardo Maya) and I (Edwin Huallpa) were walking toward MSV. We were by the residence building Gunsaulus Hall on Michigan Street, near the green area next to the parking lot in front of carman hall, when a black, old SUV with tinted windows came speeding down the street. The car braked really hard right next to us, and the people inside yelled something and suddenly they started shooting at us.
At that moment, we froze. My first instinct was to run toward the green area and protect ourselves behind the fence, but I wasn’t fully aware of what was happening. Everything felt unreal. While running, I could hear the multiple shots and see flashes coming from the car. Leo was carrying his backpack, while I only had my skateboard in hand, I threw my skateboard aside while running doing my best to don’t get hit. The sound of the projectiles hitting the walls and the ground was loud and terrifying. However, he didn’t have the same luck, getting hit twice, once in his leg and once in his right shoulder. While I was still in the scene, I could see how my friend was lying on the ground crawling while being hit, but maybe wearing his backpack was not bad at all, as it protected him since it received multiple impacts that could have made his situation worse.
At that moment, I didn’t know what to do. I was watching my friend get shot while crawling on the ground, trying to survive. The attackers were wearing ski masks. I couldn’t see their faces, only dark figures leaning out of the windows, pointing what looked like an assault rifle in our direction. For a few seconds, all I could hear were the shots, my friend’s shouts of pain, and the echoes of the projectiles hitting around us. I honestly thought we were going to die.
Finally, the SUV sped away. I maintained distance, frozen, trying to process what had just happened. My friend, who was lying on the ground in pain, was breathing heavily and started running toward me. He could barely move his leg. Seeing him injured like that was something I’ll never forget. I was shaking and couldn’t believe this was happening on campus, a place where we’re supposed to feel safe.
I looked around desperately for help, but the area was completely empty. There were no security patrols, no lights flashing, no one nearby. It was then when I realized they were never come to help us; I picked my phone from the ground where it felt when we were running and called public safety . It wasn’t until about seven minutes later that Public Safety finally arrived at the scene. By then, the SUV and the attackers were long gone.
I decided to called the 911 in a desperate attempt to get some help, We explained everything we could, including how fast the SUV was going, how hard it braked, that the shooters were wearing ski masks, the direction they came from, the direction they fled, and that they used an old black SUV with tinted windows.
It was way after when Public Safety showed up. I showed them the exact spot in Gunsalus Hall where it all happened, hoping they would check the security cameras immediately. The only thing that was said to me was, “I’m sorry this happened to you. People don’t know what they are doing.” In a moment of disbelief, I tried to redirect them toward the CPD patrol that stopped by the gas station, which was the patrol that was sent to check on us, but when we started walking toward it (me and an officer from Public Safety), the patrol left. No major actions were taken. Cameras were never checked, no patrol was sent to check the area, no alert, no notice, nothing.
Even though the projectiles turned out to be paintballs, in that moment we didn’t know what it was. It could have been bullets. The sound, the fear, and the way it all happened felt completely real. We genuinely thought someone was trying to kill us.
After the incident, we documented everything including the time, the injuries, and the location. Since that night, both of us have been struggling with the shock and anxiety from what happened. My friend is still dealing with the pain from the two hits, and I can’t walk by that area without remembering how helpless I felt watching him get shot and crawling to stay alive.
What’s most frustrating is how slow the campus response was. Seven minutes might not sound long, but when you’re being attacked, it feels like an eternity. We could have been seriously injured or worse in that time.
This incident has left us both traumatized and deeply concerned for the safety of every student who lives here. No one should ever have to experience something like this, especially not on their own campus. I hope that sharing this story helps raise awareness and pushes for real changes in campus security and response time.