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AU

Nine p.m. at the AU Shuttle Stop in Front of DHS: Three Suspects, One Handgun, and a Crime Alert on Nebraska Avenue

DCrobberytimely warninghigh confidence
Under Investigation

On November 28, 2023, around 9 p.m., an American University student was assaulted and robbed by three suspects — one armed with a handgun — at the AU shuttle stop in front of the Department of Homeland Security headquarters in the 3700 block of Nebraska Avenue NW, adjacent to American University's main campus. The suspects fled in a gray sedan. AU Police issued a Clery timely warning crime alert that evening, the second Nebraska Avenue robbery alert in three weeks.

Alerts
1
Response
Killed
Injured
Institution
American University
Private R1 · DC
~14,000 studentsAU Alerts
Confirmed Timeline

Alert Sequence

1 message in sequence · 1 verified verbatim

INITIAL ALERTEmail
Crime Alert: Armed Robbery, Assault in 3700 Block of Nebraska Ave. NW, Nov. 28, 2023 An armed robbery and assault of an American University student occurred on November 28 at approximately 9 p.m. on the 3700 block of Nebraska Ave. NW at the WMATA bus stop directly in front of the Department of Homeland Security. The subjects appeared to be three males in grey hooded sweatshirts, one was armed with a firearm, and all of whom fled the scene in a gray sedan. If you have any information or witnessed suspicious activity, the American University Police Department can be reached at (202) 885-3636 or 911 for the Metropolitan Police Department.
Verbatim text recovered from the official AU Crime Alert memo (american.edu/finance/memos/armed-robbery-assault-in-3700-block-of-nebraska-ave-nov-28-2023) via cached search snippets
The 3700 block of Nebraska Avenue NW is immediately adjacent to AU's main campus (Tenleytown/Spring Valley); the AU shuttle stop in front of the Department of Homeland Security headquarters across from Nebraska Hall is a key transit pickup point
Three suspects in grey hoodies, one armed with a handgun, fled in a gray sedan — the multi-suspect, vehicle-getaway pattern distinguishes this from solo robberies in the same corridor
This was the second armed-robbery alert on Nebraska Avenue in three weeks — a [November 10 robbery](https://www.american.edu/finance/memos/crime-alert-robbery-in-3900-block-of-nebraska-ave-nw.cfm) had occurred two blocks west
AUPD's standard crime-alert template uses the headline format 'CRIME ALERT: [Crime], [Block] of [Street]'
The (202) 885-3636 number is AUPD's 24-hour emergency dispatch line
Context

Background

American University's main campus sits at the western edge of Washington, DC, in the Spring Valley/Tenleytown neighborhood). The campus's relatively high crime rate is driven not by on-campus incidents but by robberies along the Nebraska Avenue corridor and adjacent residential streets. AU's Police Department is one of a handful of fully sworn university police forces in the District, with concurrent jurisdiction with the DC Metropolitan Police. The November 28, 2023 robbery was part of a fall 2023 cluster — a November 10 robbery two blocks west prompted a similar Clery alert. The two-warning sequence demonstrates how the Clery Act's continuing-threat standard applies when the same neighborhood is targeted repeatedly: each new incident regenerates the obligation, even when prior alerts have already been issued.
Analysis

Key Findings

AU's crime-alert template centers Clery compliance language at the top of every notification
The 3700 and 3900 blocks of Nebraska Avenue NW were a fall 2023 robbery cluster
AUPD's concurrent jurisdiction with DC Metropolitan Police is reflected in dual investigation language
Repeat alerts in the same corridor demonstrate Clery's recurring continuing-threat obligation
Robbery is the dominant Clery-reportable violent crime in AU's published statistics — a function of the campus's urban perimeter rather than on-campus dynamics
Outcome
Three suspects fled in a gray sedan. Investigation by AU Police and DC Metropolitan Police Department.
Provenance

Sources

  1. Official
  2. Student Paper
  3. Official
  4. Official
Tags
robberyarmed-robberytimely-warningprivate-r1washington-dcoff-campus-perimeterclery-complianceUnder Investigation
Added May 2026Updated May 2026Via ingestion