bruningm@lopers.unk.edu
Two attempted robberies took place the weekend before Halloween. One attempt happened outside of Antelope Hall and the other occurred off campus. Both victims were female students from UNK.
According to the Kearney Police Department incident report, Tobechukwu “Tobey” Okafor, 19, is a suspect for both attempts.
Todd Gottula, senior director of communications and marketing at UNK, confirmed the first incident occurred on campus. The UNK Police Department timely warning update from Nov. 1 stated the incident occurred at 11:30 p.m. on Oct. 29. A female student was outside of Antelope Hall, where she was approached by Okafor, according to the report. He started making comments that made her uncomfortable. Okafor took some of her personal items, including her keys.
The Kearney Police Department incident report stated the second attempt was made off campus at 12:30 a.m. on Oct. 30. According to the report, the second student was on 6th Ave., where Okafor grabbed her iPhone from her hands then smashed it.
No weapons were involved. There was no physical assault or injury that resulted from either occurrences.
Gottula says these events do not define UNK.
“We have a very safe campus,” Gottula said. “We’re (UNK) not trying to downplay these cases, but these have been very isolated incidents.”
Okafor was attending UNK this fall semester. He was suspended and removed from campus after he was arrested on Oct. 30. He was also involved in a disruption reported on Dec. 12, 2021. Okafor was carrying a weapon near the UNK campus.
The case concerning the attempted robberies has been exceptionally cleared.
The U.S. Department of Justice defines a case being exceptionally cleared as “elements beyond law enforcement’s control prevent the agency from arresting and formally charging the offender.”
“Generally, this means the reporting party doesn’t want to follow through with it,” said Derek Luke, a Kearney Police lieutenant. “There have been no charges made at this time.”
The victim involved in the off-campus incident refused to cooperate with law enforcement after Okafor was identified as the offender. This means Okafor may not receive a charge for the attempted robberies.
