Students at the University of California in Santa Barbara, ranked as the top party school in the country, are on edge after a rape and strangulation was reported on campus over the weekend.
At 10 p.m. Saturday, police sent out a university-wide alert to notify students, faculty and staff about the incident.
The UCSB Police Department’s daily log indicates that the rape and strangulation report happened on campus housing.
The student-run newspaper, The Daily Nexus, reported the suspect and victim had just met at a party in the Isla Vista neighborhood near the school, and did not know each other prior to the reported assault.
UCSB Police have not yet released any suspect information or further details into the incident.
FRAT HOUSE TURNS INTO CRIME SCENE AFTER MEMBER ALLEGEDLY SEXUALLY ASSAULTS WOMAN, POLICE SAY
UC Santa Barbara has been ranked as the top party school in the U.S. for the last two years, according to Niche Best Colleges.
Over the last few years, the school has also seen an increase in crimes like sexual assault, weapons arrests and burglaries, among others on campus.
Recent data show the school saw more than 100 reported rape cases from the years 2022 to 2024.
Each year, campus police release their Annual Security and Fire Safety Report, which provides safety incident data from the prior year. In this instance, the most recent report covers data only through 2024, since the report came out this past October.
“Federal law and university policy prevent us from discussing specifics of a case, but the campus has robust resources that are available to support survivors of sexual violence,” the University of California Police Department told Fox News Digital in a statement. “Reports of any crime that take place on university property are fully investigated by sworn officers of the UCPD. UCPD, which serves and protects the community, is a P.O.S.T. certified and accredited law enforcement agency, including by the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators, the leading authority for campus public safety.
“UCPD, like other law enforcement agencies, works closely with the Sheriff’s Office and the Santa Barbara District Attorney’s Office as appropriate. The incident is currently under active investigation. UCPD has been in direct contact with the survivor’s family from the early stages of the investigation. The campus has been contacted by an attorney purportedly representing the student and their family, and the campus has responded to the attorney on multiple occasions.”
