News

Police say Gorham Street robbery not random crime

Alder believes other downtown residents not likely in danger

A local hospital called the Madison Police Department to report a robbery on East Gorham Street after a man was treated for minor wounds to the head Monday.

The victim, 22, was pistol-whipped during a forced-entry robbery of his home on the 10th block of East Gorham Street at about 8:40 a.m., according to a police report. Although there were two perpetrators, only one carried a gun.

The victim was not a University of Wisconsin student. However, investigators believe he was targeted, according to Joel DeSpain, spokesperson for the MPD.

“We got a call from somebody at hospital that a guy was taken there because he sustained minor head injuries and was treated and released,” DeSpain said.

He added investigators will not disclose why they believe the incident was not a random act.

The victim explained he was forced to unlock his safe for the intruders, the police report said. The imposters then grabbed the victim’s money and fled.

Both of the alleged perpetrators were Caucasian males, approximately six feet tall, dressed in black clothing and black masks, the report said.

Although Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4, has yet to speak to the investigators, he said the robbery sounds like a “textbook example of a drug rip-off.”

According to Verveer, a “drug rip-off” is when the person robbed is likely involved in the drug industry and the perpetrators assume money and/or drugs of value are at the scene of the crime.

However, Verveer said although these crimes occur somewhat frequently in the area, he wants to assure his constituents such robberies are not random acts.

“At the risk of blaming the victim, which I do not want to do, I think it’s important downtown residents know this is a very isolated, targeted crime,” Verveer said. “I don’t want downtown residents believing that they could be the next victim.”

Verveer added a vast majority of these incidents go unreported because the victim is often afraid he will be targeted by the police for drug involvement.

In 1996, UW sophomore Jonathan Daniel, 19, was murdered in his home on the 600 block of University Avenue during a “drug rip-off,” Verveer said.