WESTWOOD—A search is underway for an armed suspect who allegedly confronted a female UCLA student near the campus.

The incident happened on October 17 at about 12:15 a.m. on the 400 block of Landfair Ave. Authorities from the UCLA Police Department indicated the student noted she saw the suspect loitering in front of a residential apartment building near campus.

During the confrontation, the student managed to safely run away. The suspect fled the scene as well.

At the time of the incident, the suspect was reportedly wearing a white shirt with rolled up sleeves. He allegedly pulled back his shirt to reveal to the student a small black pistol tucked in his waistband.

Ariella Benji, a UCLA student, told Canyon News that although she is scared about the armed suspect near campus, “At the same time, this one instance isn’t going to change how I feel about my campus or change anything I do…[UCLA] has good security and services to help students stay safe.”

Speaking with Canyon News, Ben Mandel, a UCLA student who lives a block away from where the incident occurred said that it is “commonplace in terms of weird things occurring near where my apartment is.” Mandel discussed various occasions in which he witnessed strange men nearby “staring into students’ windows” late at night. He also recounted an incident in which his fraternity house was burglarized earlier this year.

Mandel stated, “There is an extraordinarily large police presence in Westwood so that is also quite reassuring.”

UCLA’s website instructs the university’s students and visitors to take note of the many ‘blue hood’ emergency call boxes around the campus, to travel with friends and to always be alert of the people around you. UCLA offers security escorts across campus for anyone who wants one between dusk and 1:00 a.m.

In the advisory report, the UCLA Police Department describes the suspect as a Hispanic or Middle Eastern male, 20 to 25 years old, 6 feet tall with a stocky build, brown, medium length hair, and facial stubble.

If you have information regarding this incident, please call the UCLA Police Department at (310) 825-1491 and refer to report #14-1941.